Many students contemplate, “why do I play sports?” as they struggle to decide if the positive side of the commitment outweighs the sacrifices they make.

“I love playing Ultimate Frisbee because it’s high energy throughout the entire game, and every player gets involved,” said junior Robert Booden, who plays both on the New Trier club team and in a league outside of school.

While the time commitment for Ultimate Frisbee varies depending on the weather and field conditions, Booden sometimes spends up to 15 hours per week on the sport in the spring.

While stress is a constant factor in a high schooler’s life, Booden feels almost none of it while playing ultimate frisbee. “There’s something about the atmosphere of the game and the team, it’s a stress reliever,” he said.

Junior water polo player and swimmer Scott Grodecki agrees with Booden. “I feel less stressed during the season,” said Grodecki. “It gives me a strict routine, plus the KW release gives me another free period to get work done.”

Commitment to his club team is relaxed compared to the school season.

“I’ll maybe go to 6 practices a week for club, whereas I need to go to 9 a week during season.” It also disciplines me mentally, gives me something to do, and the team is fun to be around,” said Grodecki.

“Sometimes during season I sacrifice sleep due to morning practices, but it’s poor time management on my part,” he said. “The sacrifices are definitely worth it, even if I may be a tad off kilter in the morning”

Students who play multiple sports, or have long seasons, do not seem to mind the commitment.

Junior Katie Busch contemplated playing three sports before entering high school.

“At one point I wanted to play basketball, but then I decided not to,” said Busch, who runs cross country and plays lacrosse for New Trier. She is also involved in lacrosse club teams.

“I realized that being a tri-sport athlete would be too physically tiring, plus I wouldn’t have any time to do school work or have a social life,” she said.

While many have a passion for the game they play, student athletes are forced to change their typical routines in order to keep up with school work, like junior Sothio Suzue-Pan, who plays club hockey.

“I sacrifice a lot of studying time, so my study habits definitely had to improve,” said Suzue-Pan. “During my sports season, I have less energy during the school days because of late night practices, but I have gotten used to it.”

Some students, like junior Signe Mason who did ballet for 13 years, have had to quit their sports due to their large commitments.

“The last year I danced I was doing roughly 15 hours a week,” said Mason. “I quit last year because of an injury that still plagues me today. It was really hard to decide to quit because I love dance with a passion, but it was slowly killing me physically and mentally so I was forced to make a choice.”

Though she misses it, Mason knows she made the right choice. She said she now has more time to do homework and hang out with friends.

“I don’t miss the constant fear of never being good enough, the anxiety associated with performing, or the negative mindset I developed while dancing.”

Mason is not the only student who felt the need to stop a program she invested so much time in. Senior Maureen McNerney, captain of one of the

New Trier club girls hockey team, recently quit AAA hockey, due to the commitment.

“I had minimal time to explore other areas or interests in my life, and had always wanted to play for New Trier,” said McNerney.

While she has the opportunity to play division three hockey, McNerney said she is leaning away from playing, due to the commitment. But, she is not planning on quitting sports all together.

“If I quit playing sports I would lose a group of people I can count on, a place to go and escape from everything, and being in a good fitness state,” said McNerney. “A great community can be created because of sports and it would be hard to lose having a group of people who are working towards similar goals.”

Sophomore and volleyball player Joe Monnig is one of many students who have accepted their sport as part of their identity, which they fear they will lose if they stop playing.

“I play sports because I would never have discovered the person I am now if I never tried,” said Monnig.

Regardless of the commitment, students agree that sports should have a positive impact on its players.

“A life where you’re doing nothing is boring,” said Booden. “Sports keep you fit and keep you interacting with people. It’s social and physical. A two for one deal.”