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Beginning as early as 6 a.m., WSHS and Cotter fall sports were underway at Winona fields, gyms, courts and trails.
For the athletes, any notion of a lazy summer just came to an abrupt end.
“It’s good getting back into the swing of things,” said Hannah Glowczewski, a senior on Cotter’s volleyball team. “It’s good to be busy again.”
Dane Wunderlich, a senior linebacker and fullback on Cotter’s football team, woke early for morning practice. A few short hours later, he again was fast asleep, this time for a nap before afternoon practice. About two hours later he was back on the practice field.
Football two-a-days: perhaps the most effective sleep aide and wake-up call there ever was.
“Even though it’s a lot of time and running,” Wunderlich reasoned, “at least you’re doing what you love to do. And that’s all that matters.”
Cotter’s volleyball team, like its football and soccer teams, will hold two-a-day practices over the next two weeks, a popular method of implementing so much in such little time.
“You just want to set a good tone,” first-year Cotter volleyball coach Nick Whaley said. “Let the players know that we’re going to have fun but we’re also going to get work done.”
Each team had its own way of maximizing efficiency as the precious countdown to the regular season began.
“We basically have every minute scripted out,” Cotter football coach Pat Bowlin said. “We met as coaches four times last week and organized a lot of things, including this week and how we were going to run this day.”
Tyler Tasca, a sophomore soccer player at Winona High, had to work his day around two different scripts.
Tasca had soccer practice from 8 to 11:30 a.m. After soccer, he had about an hour for lunch before marching band practice at 1 p.m.
“It was longer than a school day,” Tasca said.
The Winhawks tennis team has a meet a week from Thursday and a tournament the following weekend. After friendly introductions Monday, the team will launch full-bore into challenge matches beginning today to determine the varsity lineup.
“These are two intense weeks that we have that kind of determine the rest of the season,” senior Tia Thompson said. “You have to go into it fearless.”
Running and conditioning are also major considerations of preseason practice. Athletes need to be prepared for the rigors of a season, but there’s always the risk of overdoing it, especially during long days of practice in the summer heat.
“I think I have a different philosophy than a lot of coaches,” WSHS boys soccer coach Pete Weess said. “A lot of coaches really kill them with conditioning, but we kind of ease them in. I don’t want my kids in the training room, I want them on the field.”
Monday, of course, was only the launching point of a season-long grind.
“Guys are going to be a little sore tomorrow,” Bowlin said. “But not so sore that they can’t do some things. As I’ve become more experienced, I’ve learned that as important as today is, tomorrow is important, too.”
