The whistle of the referee blows, he motions his hand towards our side of the court, and indicates the point we needed to win is now ours. My emotions now take over, and I immediately run to the court to greet my teammates on the win we have all been yearning for. Tears pour down my cheek as I fumble into the dog pile in the center of the court inches away from the ten-foot line. I draw my eyes to Emily. I am now crying into her shoulder, and she is doing the same to mine. My coach is smiling from ear to ear, because she has now coached a team that has made school athletic history.

Walking into the gym in July of 2016, I knew this season was going to be one of the most agonizingly stressful and tiring one I have endured because of the standards set before me and the team. Going into practice and team camps knowing you have a target on your back is a very large burden to have. Teams gawking and making spiteful remarks about wanting to take a title away from your team is not very pleasant either. However, every day after school from 3:30-6:00 was when the team shed enough sweat to fill an entire Olympic size pool. The work and drills put into practice every day was the foundation for our success on November 12, 2016.

On November 12, 2016, anxiety pulsated through my veins as I warm up before running onto the court. My team lines up next to our opponent as we process into the Pontchartrain Center. Approaching the bench, I sit in my designated spot, like I have been doing all year. The whistle is blown; the game has commenced. As the first game occurs, my nerves has somewhat decreased, but I am still sweating out of stress and anxiousness. Game one our team has conquered. Switching onto the other side of the court, my nerves have been eased. The easing of nerves soon came crashing down in game two. St. Joseph’s Academy seized game two with effortlessness. However, we came out strong and took game three easily. Nevertheless, game four was an upset to both the team and our coach. I remember my coach bellowing into my team’s ears about how we cannot give up, because we have worked so hard to be in the position we are in. After hearing this inspirational speech by coach, the mindset now is to take the fifth set away from St. Joseph’s Academy. Just like that, the task had been completed.

I look to the referee as he blows his whistle. My teammates immediately drop to the floor and burst into tears. The tears shed from their eyes as well as mine are not out of sadness but happiness. I run onto the court to greet my team on the win and new title we have earned for our school. I am out of breath, screaming, and crying all at the same time. The sound of my mother screaming, “We did it! It happened! Three peat!” circulates the gym to meet my ears. The organizers of the event motion for the team to get up to await the presentation of the state championship trophy. The runner up trophy St. Joseph receives for their valiant efforts against us. The announcer broadcasts on the speaker to the fans and teams the winner of the 2016 division one state championship title. Ms. Simno keeps saying, “Who would have thought?” That line still echoes in my head today.

The trophy’s surface was cold and smooth as I pressed it onto my fingertips. We took the trophy back to a teammates house and ate as much food as someone should eat in a week’s time. Winning the game on November 12, 2016 was truly an amazing feeling. Being a part of a team desiring to have the title more than anything in the world was more than I could ask for. But most of all, being a part of the team with the three-peat title was one of the best things that I have ever experienced, and I hope to experience something like that again in the near future.