With the recent increase in Coronavirus cases, schools around the country remain closed for the remainder of the year. Sports seasons and activities held by clubs have been canceled and will no longer happen due to school closures. 

Students and athletes involved in spring sports, end of the year field trips and different activities throughout their clubs have experienced the need to cope with losing their important end of the year activities. 

As a result of the school closures, student athletes competing on the many spring sports teams have had to deal with the pain of having their season end even before it even began. Senior athletes competing in the spring sports season will never get to play again for their high school team.

These senior student athletes have found it difficult that this is the way their high school athletic career ends. 

“During the beginning of all of this I just kept telling myself that we’d go back in time to somewhat have a season left. I kept practicing and working out, drilling, trying to get better, things don’t seem as hopeful now, but it just seems like it was meant to be this way for everyone now. I did all that I could do, and it’ll have to be until things get situated,” senior track and field athlete Harley Price said.

“I’m really upset and bummed out that I can’t play my last season of softball. I had goals that I wanted to meet this year and be able to walk across the field with my parents on senior night recognizing all my time and hard work put into something that I love. I’m trying to be positive in the fact that everything happens for a reason and hope that we will still get to play summer ball,” senior softball player Delaney Crider said. 

Crider and Price are continuing workouts to help keep their mind off of the coronavirus affecting their seasons. 

“Even though it’s hard to not think about, I know that working out helps me take my mind off it as well as FaceTiming my friends or enjoying the outdoors,” Crider said.

“A lot of workouts and drills to keep up with my physical requirements to succeed for track and a lot of walking, reading and cooking to pass the time,” Price said. 

Athletes on the spring sports teams realize that everyone needs to come together because COVID-19 is affecting everyone. 

“I really thought we were going to have a great season this year. We have put in so many days and hours of training since October that I thought it was going to pay off in the season. I’m positive that the seniors next year will be awesome leaders and be grateful for their senior season because you don’t know when it could go away. It’s disappointing to see all go away so fast, but I’m excited for my next chapter in life,” Crider said.

“I think that we all really do need to come together with this. It does affect all of us, and we all are going through the same thing. It would benefit everyone to just stay home and listen to what the government is telling us to do because in the end they’re doing it to keep us safe. I’m blessed to be able to have had the opportunity to get where I am with every one of my seasons. It’s heartbreaking to have nearly no senior season, but it’s for the best,” Price said.

Students in clubs have experienced the heartache of losing something valuable to them during this time in quarantine. Big end of the year field trips have been what many students were looking for to end the 2020 school year. 

Students are having difficulty coping with the loss of end of the year activities. Many students are trying to keep busy during quarantine.

“I’m trying to keep busy as best as I can by working out and being creative with art because I’m not able to participate in the activities,” senior Jazzmine McCauley said.

“I’m involved in multiple activities such as band, orchestra, wind ensemble, theatre. The cancellation of our concerts and field trips and graduation and prom has been very hard to deal with especially as a senior. I’ve continued practicing for my activities, especially for the musical in hopes that it is postponed for summer. I found that it is best to focus on positive outcomes or looking toward the future in a more optimistic way. Although we may no longer be able to participate in these activities, the memories I’ve made throughout my many years of involvement are something I can cherish forever,” senior Adrianna Huss said.

“I am struggling a lot due to not being able to participate in my favorite activities. In a lot of my clubs, we had end of the year field trips and activities planned that will never happen now,” senior Vydalia Weatherly said. 

One of the many important end of the year activities planned was the Disney music department field trip. With the closures of school and Disney, the music department field trip was canceled and has affected many of the students involved. 

“Dealing with all of what has been going on has been quite stressful. It is very upsetting that we may never get our final shows or performances that we’ve been looking forward to throughout our time as students. I hope that we may be able to set aside time after quarantine ends to have our final shows. Though it may not be likely that this will happen, it is nice to think about positive outcomes. It is much better to focus on the positives rather than the negatives,” Huss said.

“All year long, I was looking forward to Disney and counting down the date. When they rescheduled the date, I had hoped the trip would occur. However, now that they rescheduled for next year, all the seniors are missing another end of the year event that we were looking for. We do not even know what is happening with prom and graduation, and it’s a terrible way to end our senior year,” Weatherly said.

“I’m really upset about the Disney trip getting cancelled because the seniors have been waiting for years for the big, end of the year trip. For the underclassmen, they get another chance to go. The seniors don’t, and it really stinks,” McCauley said.