By Meredith O’Brien

A student athlete usually has three hours a day devoted to the sport he/she is currently playing. Sports take up at least three hours that they could be studying for a test or finishing homework. High school students who are involved with sports tend to have more stress on their shoulders than the average student. Managing time is an important element for any student athlete. After games that end anywhere from 8 to 10 at night, finding the time to do homework is crucial.

Jessica Staley, a senior volleyball player, stated; “ Participating in athletics leaves little time for us to work on homework and study for test, so we are often overloaded with homework.” Schedules for athletes usually include school, practice or game, eat, homework, and then finally going to bed. Athletes usually have no time to think about themselves, instead they tend to worry about school and their sports.

Grades for an athlete are important. According to school rules, an athlete must contain a C average. Seniors have the joy of not only worrying about sports and school, but they also have to stress out about college application and scholarship forms. Macy Warren said, “I try to look into colleges at least every other day.” Finding time to look into colleges is important for seniors. Application deadlines are coming up, and students need to be aware of that.

This is why a lot of student athletes stress out more. Doing homework while trying to get enough sleep takes a lot of time management. Bria Krutsinger, a high honor roll senior, and a full time athlete states that, “ The most stressful part of my day is trying to find the time to do homework after a game and still get enough sleep.” She also said that her senior year is a lot more stressful than years past.

Not only do athletes accumulate stress from trying to keep grades up, they have pressure from their coach and teammates. Every game and practice you have to try and play at your 110 percent best. If you don’t, you let down not only yourself, but your team as well. Disappointing others could create pressure that could lead to poor performance.

Being involved in sports as a teenager in high school can test your mental strength. Depression, anxiety, and other mental problems can be the outcome of stress from a student athlete. Symptoms like sleeplessness, loss of appetite and fatigue could prevent a student from performing to his or her full capabilities.

Some athletes, though, use the stress and anxiety in a different way. Some turn it around for their own advantage. It can improve their performance. However, if an athlete has too much anxiety it can create problems and they can lose their focus and concentration.

Injuries cause an enormous amount of stress and loss of self confidence. Many athletes think they will not perform as well as they did before an injury. Bailey Pearce, a sophomore who tore her ACL while playing basketball stated, “ I get stressed out from time to time. I start thinking about what if I hurt my ACL again or what if when I get healthy again I won’t be as good as I used to be. To overcome my stress, I work harder and harder at physical therapy to make sure that I won’t get hurt again.” Pearce’s doctor has approved her to shoot some hoop but she still can’t do any drill or scrimmaging.

Stress can be good or bad. Students athletes usually cope with it or they sleep it off. You can use it to your advantage or you can drown in it. Students need to learn that school comes first and sports second. Busy schedules aren’t always bad. They keep the teenagers away from parties and drugs. Being involved with some kind of sport during high school will make you physically and mentally stronger, but you have to be prepared for the obstacles that come along with it.