Close your eyes and imagine: you’re on a football team. You’ve been having great success and recently won multiple state championships. And then one day, with the wave of a wand and the magic word “gradu-

ation,” all of your best players disappear.

This is the dilemma that Shorecrest athletics has found themselves in. Many Shorecrest sports rely heavily on the Class of 2025, and without them, the teams may suffer. Current seniors have helped lead their teams to numerous victories: a state championship four-peat in football, a dis- trict win for baseball, and district finals for

boys basketball.

The boys basketball, baseball, and football teams are between 40-86 percent seniors. Junior Damarion Feaster, a football, basketball, and track athlete, said, “Our senior class is a very talented group, so it’s big shoes to fill.”

Overall, the Class of 2025 has proven to be very skilled, and losing them could lead to more work for the teams next year. Regarding the bas- ketball team, Feaster said, “The team is just not going to be as good. Nick

Bearden, as a senior, and Ahmad Crumity, as a senior— 

those were two of our best players, and they are going to be gone.” Additionally, senior and

first baseman on the varsity baseball team Tommy Murphy said, “Seniors are 

a foundational piece and someone who underclass- men can look up to. I think the holes that are going to be left by our grade are going to be felt, but I also think that it will push the underclassmen and even the juniors right now to become leaders on the team.” 

Murphy also expressed that juniors are going to need to take larger leadership roles, even though It may be challenging. Although the losses may be difficult, the support from coaches and camaraderie among team members should help them get through it together. 

The football team may also feel the effects of the seniors’ absence. Freshman and offensive and defensive linebacker Griffin King said, “The holes [left] are

going to be [for] pretty big roles. Nick [Bearden] is leaving; he’s the quarterback. I don’t know [if there will

be someone to fill his role], but I hope so, because if not, we’ll be in trouble.”

Eighth Grade MS Math Teacher and as-

assistant football coach Kevin Perez also feels concerned about the football team’s ability to recover from these vital losses, both in the offensive and defensive lines. He said, “It’s going to be tough to maintain the level of success we had, but I think we can do it.”

Many schools have similar problems, as athletes naturally come and go. “It tends to rotate. There’s always a couple of teams in the league that are in the same boat we are. There are a couple of teams with a big junior class, so they are going to have a good year next year, and then they will have the same problem that we are having right now, said Perez.

Although graduating from high school is a long-awaited milestone, some seniors may feel bittersweet about leaving their teams behind. King also feels that some seniors are experiencing some guilt. He said, “I have a feeling that Wes [Ryan] doesn’t want to leave because I know he loves this team.”