Four long years. Four years of highs. Four years of lows. Four year athletes have dedicated their time and devotion to the sport they love. Many of them are seen in their highest moments and achievements, where people infer their journeys have been nothing but sunshine and rainbows, but the truth is a lot more complicated.
Calabasas High School senior Tyson Bass has an intense focus displayed on his face, mastering his shot with repetition. Bass, who has been in the school’s basketball program for four years, ends practice on the shooting machine making 100 shots, and has described his four year experience in the school’s basketball program as a roller coaster. Bass reflected on the highs and lows of his four year journey in the school’s basketball program and his decision to pursue basketball all four years.
“Well, coming to Calabasas as a freshman I actually played two sports, baseball and basketball. I decided to stay with basketball. It was just the love I had playing it. There were obviously sometimes where I struggled, where I thought I should’ve played more than I was, but I chose to stay with it because of the passion I had for it,” Bass said.
Bass’s tough decision to choose between basketball and baseball was the first moment he realized basketball was what he wanted to pursue. This revelation allowed him to steer his mind towards the court.
Bass not only views basketball as a sport, but as a connection to other people that carries over outside the court too.
“I feel like it’s an easy connector with people. Especially when I’ve been to places, like the gym to go play basketball and it’s easy to meet people and make friends. I can go out of town and see someone that plates basketball and we already have a connection,” Bass said.
He mentions how this has helped him put more grit into his mindset, not only on the court, but in other aspects of his life too.
With all the positives mentioned by Bass, he also brought up there has been tough times that have made him questioned to continue playing basketball in high school. Bass talks about how sometimes playing too much basketball and overexposure to the game can cause a period of struggle and losing love for the game last season.
“To be honest, recently I had a burnout over last summer where I had thoughts where I didn’t want to play, but I made the decision to keep playing. Honestly now, I’ve been more motivated to play for my body. I’ve been trying really hard to keep playing because I still love basketball. I realized it helps my body a lot and I want to maximize everything I get from it,” Bass said.
Throughout the four years Bass has experienced in the school’s basketball program, he emphasizes the biggest lesson he has learned is patience.
“I would say, especially from the program here, that the hard work you put in is going to have an outcome eventually. It may not be or when you think it should be, but it will eventually come. I think that’s a great lesson in life for everything, your work will show eventually,” Bass said.
The same can be said for another four year athlete and senior at Calabasas High School, Hayley Slobin. Slobin, who is on the Calabasas Dance team has had a love and passion for dancing since she could remember.
“I was two years old when I started dancing. I fell in love with the competitive aspect when I was around 6. Ever since then I’ve just been growing in the competition world. I started off dancing one routine a season, now I have about ten a season,” Slobin said.
Slobin described the process as extremely stressful when she tried out for the dance team her freshman year, and how she was not the only one who had dedicated her life to dancing for years.
“Trying out for dance here was very stressful because of the amount of competition there was. Everyone was amazing and very talented. So I think that when I was trying out I was a little bit anxious, but once I made the team I found my family and it’s been really cool,” Slobin said.
All incoming athletes have internal thoughts of doubts and nerves. Slobin reflecting on her own anxiety during the time of trying out shows how it’s okay for athletes to have internal struggles, because of how hard they work. Pressure is a privilege, not a curse. Slobin’s reflection on how her initial competitors have become like family highlights the bond athletes build throughout their four year journeys.
Even though Slobin is unsure if she will major in dance in college, she knows she wants to pursue it furthermore after high school. The lessons she learned in high school has helped build her for the future and she is well aware of that.
“I think my biggest lesson is perseverance and just learning how to push through hard setbacks and disappointments. I think just working hard and pushing through to make myself better,” Slobin said.
