Sports are different for everyone. Even the greatest of players struggle under the wraps. Basketball captain Lily Capulong uses basketball to help her with confidence and maintain resilience to bounce back when things don’t go to plan.
As a freshman Lily made varsity but received little playing time. As a result, it ruined her confidence and made her feel like she wasn’t good enough. The following year she knew it was her time to step up. Her sophomore season held a lot of great memories for her. At first, it started rocky then suddenly “We started playing together as a team and won a lot of games, it was really fun to be a part of.”Lily states.
In her junior year, her head coach, (Coach Weaver) selected her to be team captain. Weaver discussed that Lily is a “natural leader by encouraging her teammates and getting them to the next level”. She enjoys watching Lily grow as a leader and a player because of her position as a point guard, she controls the entire phase of the game. Lily averages five assists a game, six deflections a game, and five steals a game. She mentioned Lily has fought through a back injury but even through that, she still plays to her full capability.
Lily has “Grown up playing basketball with a lot of pressure”, Lily said. She has always felt the need to play her best, otherwise, she would not only be letting herself down but her team down. Because of this, she describes herself as an “Emotional player which is a good thing but also just as bad”, Lily states. She noticed that when she would get in her head, it affected how she played. Even her parents notice she struggles with it mentally but “They both help me overcome my mental game, they kinda take that wait off”, she claims. Coach Weaver picked up on this about Lily. She talked with her telling her to “Enjoy things and take the weight off your shoulders and the pressure off. Just truly enjoy the game”, Weaver said this because the season was ending and she wanted Lily to have fun.
On the upside, Lily pushes through while still being a talented athlete. She knows that “When [she’s] at low points in [her] life there are going to be people who are still rooting for [her]”. Basketball helped her through obstacles and to build the confidence to bounce back ten times harder after bad days. “Cause it will show eventually, you just have to prove people wrong and even yourself,” Lily stated.
Her favorite part is playing with talented people ( her teammates). She loves learning from them but also guides and supports them. Teammate ella
B
says Lily “Actually fixed my free throws for me.” Ever since Bella has been able to make her free throws more consistently. Bella describes Lily as “Fun and a great player, her basketball IQ is much smarter than most players. She’s an overall great teammate and friend.”
Lily has had struggles but these never prevented her from growing her talent and encouraging her team. It has taught her a lot, with great talent comes great struggles but also great success and memories.