• HOME
  • FEATURES
    • Best Of Cover Shoot
    • Pet Owner’s Stories
    • People
    • Places
    • Issues
    • Remembering
    • Things
    • To Do
  • DEPARTMENTS
    • Finance / Real Estate
      • Financial Articles
      • Top 10 Most Expensive Homes Sold
      • Real Estate
        • Real Estate Experts
        • Articles
    • Attorney Directory
    • Ask the Experts
    • Business
      • Belle Hall Shopping Center
      • Lowcountry Women in Business
      • MP Business
    • Entertainment
      • Golf
    • Fashion & Beauty
    • Food & Drink
    • Giving Back
    • Health & Wellness
      • COVID-19 Articles & Resources
    • House & Home
    • Learning
      • Wando High School
    • Love & Marriage
    • Pets
    • Relax & Retire
  • Read Magazine
  • MORE MAGS
    • Charleston Women đŸ‘©â€đŸ«đŸą
    • Lowcountry Cuisine đŸ§€đŸ·
    • Best of Mt Pleasant Mag 🏆🏆
    • Charleston Women in Real Estate đŸ‘©đŸ˜ïž
    • MP Business Mag 🏱
    • MP Pets đŸ¶đŸ±
    • Charleston Independent School Directory đŸ«
    • MP Senior Living đŸ‘ŽđŸ‘”
    • More Mags
      • IOP Mag
      • SI Mag
      • MP Town Hall Magazine
  • OUR TOWN
    • MP Town Hall
    • MP Town Council
  • DIRECTORIES
    • East Cooper Church Directory
    • East Cooper Fitness Directory
    • Local 2019 CPA Tax Directory
    • Mount Pleasant Apartment Directory
  • SUBSCRIBE

Mount Pleasant Magazine

Mount Pleasant Magazine (Mount Pleasant, SC) informs residents and visitors about people, places and happenings around our area.

Shop Belle Hall
  • Best of Mount Pleasant
    • Best Of Winner Articles
    • Best Of Results Current & Past
    • Best Of Winner Articles
    • Best Of Magazines
    • Best Of Videos
    • Best Of Party Photos
    • Best Of Plaques
  • Podcast
  • Local Events
  • Our Winners
  • Advertise
    • Advertise With Us
    • Media Kit
    • Video Testimonials
  • MORE
    • MP Neighborhoods
    • East Cooper Online Network
    • Real Estate Experts
    • Attorney Directory
    • News
    • Contact

High School Athletes Find Dual Success in Sports, Academics: Team Effort

Posted by MPM Leave a Comment

Wando High School football.
Wando High School football.

Your high school football team is behind by a touchdown at the 10-yard line with a second left on the clock. What are they trying to decide in that huddle? To run? A pass? 
 To get together after the game and study for that AP Calculus exam?

Oceanside Collegiate Academy.
Oceanside Collegiate Academy.

At Mount Pleasant’s outstanding secondary schools, the answer could be all three. That’s because the tradition of the student-athlete is so strong here that sports and academics are inseparable.

Coach Chad Grier, director of athletics at Oceanside Collegiate Academy, might have been speaking on behalf of all his fellow sports mentors when he said, “Sports are critical to the high school experience. We recognize how important a part of a total education sports is and that athletics should be a part of the total education of every student.”

At Wando High School, Robert Hayes, coach and director of athletics, echoed that belief, stating, “A student who participates in extracurricular activities has the opportunity to enhance his or her educational experience. And playing a sport is one of the best ways to do just that.”

Coach Dale Hoover, athletic director at Palmetto Christian Academy, concurred. “Generally, athletes are also good students. We make sure that they understand that their studies come first. If they don’t keep up with their academics, they don’t get to play sports. In life, you always have to make choices,” Hoover added, “and you have to make sacrifices 
 choose what’s important to you, and make the time for what you choose. That’s one of the life lessons sports teaches you.”

Palmetto Christian Academy volleyball.
Palmetto Christian Academy volleyball.

That’s all well and good to say for these dedicated educators who have chosen to focus on athletics. But how do their student-athletes feel about it?

Oceanside senior Joey Boylston just committed to the University of Utah to play lacrosse after playing that sport and football at the high school level. He said, “Sports and academics are a good fit. I’ve never felt any conflict between the two. If you work hard, you can excel both at sports and at academics.”

His classmate Valentina Mosquera, a soccer attacking midfielder aiming to play at a Division I college, said she “would recommend to any incoming student that they get involved in sports, even if they’ve never played before.” She continued, “Committing to something outside the classroom really helps with time management. When I have homework, I have to set aside the time to do it before or after practice. I can’t just ignore it.”

Palmetto Christian Academy football.
Palmetto Christian Academy football.

In addition to time management, Wando football quarterback and baseball center fielder Will Pickens feels that playing high school sports “is a great experience.” He added, “I think it has really helped my education. I love being a team player because it teaches you not to focus just on yourself. Others are depending on you.”

At Palmetto Christian Academy, Mack Poston is one of those unusual football players who goes both ways on offense and defense “in part because we’re a smaller school.” Poston doesn’t anticipate playing at the college level but feels his high school academics have prepared him for a major in civil or mechanical engineering at a first-rate university such as Georgia or Clemson. “It can be hard to come off a tough practice then study for a difficult test,” he said, “especially when you’re really tired out. But that’s just part of being in high school. I think it’s made me a better person by learning to balance the two.”

Oceanside Collegiate Academy’s Valentina Mosquera.
Oceanside’s Valentina Mosquera.

Palmetto Christian senior Emily Campbell plays both basketball and tennis and hopes to continue playing both at the college level, possibly at the University of South Carolina. “Our coaches want us to focus on our sports while not neglecting our studies. They’re very flexible. If a big exam is coming up, they’ll let us study before it and practice later. Or, if we’re getting extra help from one of our teachers, they’ll let us show up for practice when we can.” Free periods and study halls help Campbell get all her schoolwork done. She added, “I think that sports have been a bonus, not a drawback, to my studies.”

A recurring theme for coaches and athletes alike is the significance of being part of a team effort.

Coach Grier said, “Team sports provide students with an opportunity to learn accountability, as well as an opportunity to get what they earn. They learn the character traits that will serve them well in life after school.”

Coach Hayes observed, “They’re all going to be on teams of one kind or another for the rest of their lives. Sports helps them learn early on what it means to be a good teammate.”

Coach Hoover noted, “When you combine sports with academics, you are interacting with people on the playing field and in the classroom in ways that will benefit you for the rest of your life. One of the things that brings students together,” he added, “are the tough times they go through. Things that are easy, we tend to forget. Things that are hard stick with us.”

Do these coaches and their players have it right? Or are they just defending their positions? A study by the International Journal of the History of Sport, quoted in the respected U.K. newspaper The Guardian, concluded that for student-athletes having “‘dual careers’ provides motivation for training and preparation, stimulating athletes intellectually and relieving stress.”

In Mount Pleasant’s high schools, the results are clearly in: Athletics and academics are complementary, not oppositional.

Nonetheless, as Coach Hayes put it, “When you come back to your reunion, you’re not going to be talking about your tough final exam. You’re going to be talking about the big game at Summerville or the upset win at West Ashley.”

P.S. When your team broke that huddle, they threw a screen pass for the TD and the win! Then, they poured a bucket of Gatorade over the head of their calculus teacher.

By Bill Farley

Sharing is Caring

Possibly Related:

Photo of sports equipment for Statewide Athletic Directors articleWhen Sports Just Stopped
 GymMasters is located at 301 Ports Authority Drive in Mount Pleasant, SC.GymMasters Gym Academy: Enhancing All Sports Default ThumbnailPodcast Episode 8: Tour of the New Lucy Beckham High School | Part 1 Default ThumbnailPodcast Episode 9: Exclusive Tour of Lucy Beckham High School with Principal Anna Dassing | Part 2

Filed Under: Issues Tagged With: Sep Oct 2019

Leave a Reply Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Search the Site


We're on Facebook We're on Twitter Mount Pleasant Magazine Youtube Channel We're on Pinterest Mount Pleasant Magazine Facebook Community We're on Instagram
READ ONLINE
Read the digital magazine now.
GRAB A COPY
Where can I pick up a copy of Mount Pleasant Magazine?
GRAB A COPY
At Welcome Centers & Airports
SUBSCRIBE
Get Mount Pleasant Magazine Delivered.
Pamper your pets at Hairy Winston Pet Boutique and Grocery!
McCay Kiddy CPAs & Advisors. More Than Numbers. Welcome to the New Age CPA Firm.
Enter your pet in the East Cooper Favorite Pets Photo Contest
Read Charleston Women Magazine online now.
Suzie Smith, pet-friendly real estate agent/Realtor


Online Magazines

Mount Pleasant

Lifestyle Magazine

Read Isle of Palms

Magazine Online

Read Sullivan's Island

Magazine Online

Take a Bite

Lowcountry Cuisine Magazine

Georgetown, SC. Yummy Day Trips
Isle of Palms Magazine - family of sites logo
Mount Pleasant Magazine - family of sites logo
North Mount Pleasant Magazine - family of sites logo
Sullivan's Island Magazine - family of sites logo

Recent Posts

Podcast Episode 15: Jenn Cady & the Best Of Cover Photo Shoot

Podcast Episode 15: On this episode of VOICE for Mount Pleasant Jenn Cady talks with MPM Publisher Bill Macchio about the cover shoot for the magazine cover for the Mount Pleasant Magazine Best of … Continue Reading

Local Cheer to End the Year: Operation COVID Christmas

By Pamela Jouan Sometimes all it takes is a phone call to get the ball rolling on a great idea. When Mayor Will Haynie decided it was time to spread joy throughout Mount Pleasant, he started dialing … Continue Reading

Daniel Island Section

Keeping the Dream of Playing Tennis Alive: The South Carolina Junior Tennis Foundation

Since 1973, South Carolina’s Lowcountry has welcomed players from the Women’s Tennis Association once a year for the annual Volvo Car Open, North America’s largest women-only tennis tournament. … Continue Reading

Truly One-of-a-kind: 369 Ralston Creek Drive

Big cities certainly have advantages – culture, dining, employment opportunities and excitement. But face it: Sometimes people yearn for a peaceful, serene atmosphere where they can relax, raise a … Continue Reading

More Daniel Island Section Posts

SEARCH

Featured Pages

Mount Pleasant Apartments
East Cooper Online Network

Copyright © 2021 · Mount Pleasant Magazine, All Rights Reserved. Advertise With Us.