Imagine popping a balloon of pumping tension, buildup, and adrenaline in one second. All of that tension abated with a simple jab. Or, in this case, with a powerful strike to a soccer ball. The Winchester Bears experienced this sensation for the first time of the season last weekend when the boys soccer team beat not one, but two class 4A teams and one class 2A at the Pine-Richland Labor Day Tournament. After months of hours-long practices to prepare for the season, the Bears were able to show the Pittsburgh community the extent of their driving passion and skill in the sport, which the Winchester community has accepted as common knowledge. But such respect and success doesn’t come for free.

“We see each other more than our own families, but that is what it takes to do big things. We are all willing to do it, not only because we want to win, but we all love doing it”, explains Junior Alex Hauskrecht. “Some of the boys get home well past 7 pm every day because of the commutes, but that doesn’t stop them from coming to training and giving it everything.” Whether it’s having to make notable personal sacrifices for the team, to make the whole school enthusiastic and hopeful for the promising team, the boys never fail to go the extra mile to bring an element of excitement to the school through their sport. It’s safe to say that the Boys soccer culture at WT has redefined school spirit in the school walls. 

     But this spirit reaches far beyond Morewood Avenue. Where the Bears go, more bears will follow, for the fan devotion of the team was proven during the tournament when handfuls of students came to Pine-Richland in order to cheer on their peers both days. The WT student section of the tournament was immersed in the game, lungs fatigued from hollering for their school representatives. “The atmosphere was out of this world. When Grant (Robinson, ‘22) put it top bins the energy of the fans took over the stadium”, exclaims senior Jackson Zemek, who was one of the many onlookers of the tense second game of the tournament for the bears, against the Pine-Richland Rams. Zemek is referring to one of the many outstanding goals made that night, this one in specific being a penalty kick shot by Senior Grant Robinson; one of four scorers for the Bears in the penalty shootout of the 2-2 tied game. 

“I think we made a huge statement to our rivals by beating 2 4A teams, outlasting one of them in penalties. Going into the playoffs, penalties become a real possibility, so having already done that in front of other schools and just the fact that they’re two 4A teams shows that we can play close games and win them against whoever,” comments Oliver Daboo.

     The changes made by the WT also go far beyond the game of soccer. The WT community has evolved and grown for the better thanks to the school spirit brought home by the Bears. 

“We know that whenever we play our game we can beat any team on any day.”

     But this is just the beginning for the bears. Winchester has evolved into an environment with a driven passion for soccer and the team’s athletic success, whether it’s putting one’s heart on the line in every soccer game playing, or being a support net cheering the team every step of the way. With the intense seriousness and love for the sport, the Bears are ready to fight to the end for their success and potential to go down in school history.  Junior Oliver Daboo gave us a look at the Bears’ hopes and plans for the future.

“That attitude we have when we go down a goal will really help us in our quest for a WPIAL and PIAA championship because there is going to be adversity along the way. But for us to win, we’re going to have to overcome those challenges and I have full confidence we can do that because we are a tightly-knit team. “ Such an attitude presented by the team, along with much more, goes to show that our WT Bears are just getting started.