While most students use their long-awaited summer break to relax, the Falcon High School athletes use summer time to practice and prepare for the upcoming season, which officially begins Aug. 15.Practices and camps are in place for football, cheerleading and baseball. All teams have practiced throughout June and will go into July. They’ve worked hard this summer with hopes of improving.The football team has been preparing since the end of the last school year by lifting weights everyday from 6 to 8 a.m. They left for their camp in Kearney, Neb. June 11, and, after a rough week of football, they returned home on June 14.There will be some changes on the team next year: a new coaching staff as well as new players.The cheerleaders have been working extremely hard this year to better themselves, especially the competition squad.Practices for the regular cheer squad started on June 6 and continued until the beginning of camp. Camp started on June 9 and finished on the 11. Camp was different this year; instead of sending our cheerleaders to camp at a college campus, they brought the camp to the high school. The Universal Cheerleaders Association instructors worked with the squad from 7:25 am to 4 p.m. in the afternoon. There is another mandatory camp for competition cheerleaders on July 22, July 24 and July 25.They are practicing harder then ever in the hopes that they will make finals at state this year and then move on to nationals. Last year, the state squad took eighth place out of 42 teams.The baseball team also has been practicing this summer. They play games against rival high schools during their summer league, which is kind of a developmental league for the incoming freshmen and helps the older players improve on their skills, said Falcon High School senior Sean McNames. The team’s last game was June 29 against Pine Creek High School. When they aren’t practicing or playing, they have strength training and conditioning.The volleyball and softball teams have been practicing hard also. The volleyball team has had a few night practices, and the softball team has had a few afternoon practices to warm up for next year.The teams are striving for improvement and have succeeded in pushing themselves further. For more information on Falcon High School sports, visit www.d49.org/schools/fhs/athletics.htm.
