Photo Provided by Mrs. Simonton

All of the freshmen had a life-changing day at the Women in Sports Conference!

Every year, a group of Royal Freshmen get to have the amazing opportunity of going to the annual Orange County Women in Sports gathering. This trip took place on Monday, Feb. 23 in Anaheim.  The Orange County Athletic Directors Association (OCADA) organizes this day for all of the high schools around Orange County. On this field trip, they get to hear inspiring talks regarding many achievements of female athletes and their stories.

Our Health and Wellness teacher, Mrs. Simonton, takes the Royals alongside Ms. Sutcliffe to this life-changing event. 

Mrs. Simonton finds it important that the freshmen attend, she believes, “Every woman’s success in sport’s should be an inspiration to another. We’re strongest when we cheer each other on!” She is definitely right with that statement.

It is so important to start your high school career off positively. Sports are often one of the causes of girls becoming burnt out. Freshman Hayden Brooks had an eye-opening day: “My takeaway from this experience was that it’s okay to fail and not succeed. Your setbacks will only make you stronger.” She is so right. Focusing on your hardships with a positive mind in times of doubt is an important way to become mentally strong. 

Many freshmen want to attend for various reasons. Let’s hear from Amanda Houshan ’29 on why she wanted to go: “I wanted to go so that I could be able to hear other experiences from women in sports, as my sport has been a big part of my life. The biggest thing I learned was that failure is the most formative thing. I learned that the biggest success in sports often sprouts from the deepest losses.” Amanda makes a really good point. 

The talks inspired so many of our Royals; freshman Rylin Shook shared, “My biggest takeaway from this experience was the moral of putting in the work to get your desired outcome. Success doesn’t just come from privilege but from perseverance.” That is true!

Overall, it seems like an amazing event to attend. If you have a sister or friend who is going to be an incoming freshman in the fall, I would definitely tell them to attend.