A great activities meeting
I'm far too busy tonight with the newspaper to write much here, but I'm pleased to report that a really great activities meeting was held tonight at Olson Auditorium. Activities Director Chris Anderson guided parents and student-athletes through a half-hour presentation on what I'll just call the "rules of the road" for those who participate in extra-curricular activities at B-B-E. Tomorrow, I hope to share some video from tonight.
I have been amazed...
With a front-row seat to the workings of the tennis team, I have been amazed at the work that the captains of an athletic team put in to manage what's known as "Captains Practice Week." I had a section of my newspaper column written up about this, but lack of space led me to cut it out before publishing. I'll try to re-write it here. I've never actually gotten a good look at captains practice for any athletic team in the 22+ years I've been a sports reporter. It's just never crossed my radar. The closest I've gotten was tennis captains practice in 2024 for my oldest daughter. Even that amounted to no more than dropping her off and picking her up.
This year, I was asked to help with recruiting. Oh, boy! That's a job I take very, very seriously! That's a job we all should take seriously! I jumped right into it. You learn quite a bit about the inner workings of a team as they try to build numbers and run practices/drills without the guidance of coaches. I cannot be more impressed by what I'm seeing from the tennis captains. The role is not easy, but any role that has great value is going to come with hard work!
The "no contact" week for coaches doesn't really have the same pop here as it would in a bigger school. The no-contact rule was put in place years ago by the MSHSL in order to prevent burnout in student athletes. To me, it's more than that: it presents the opportunity for the captains of a high school team to step up and show leadership. Huge, HUGE skills they need in life!
I'm not aware of volleyball numbers, but they're not hurting. The varsity team is "loaded for bear" for the 2025 season with big goals to achieve. As for cross country, the graduation of Taylor Nelson leaves a huge void. I'll catch up to our A.D. this week and find out if there's any cross country prospects for the paired B-B-E/Paynesville team. This is available for boys and girls athletes at B-B-E.
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