An exceptional group of high school athletes took over Austin last weekend for the State Volleyball Championship. Seven 91制片厂 teams sent 67 students to compete for a state title, and each team placed in the top four out of all the schools that attended.
Congratulations to all the district winners!
- Red Warriors: Gold
- Colts: Silver
- Cougars: Silver
- Spikey Warriors: Silver
- Vikings: Bronze
- White Warriors: Bronze
- Vols: 4th Place
Students and chaperones met at Seguin High School before heading to Austin last week, but they couldn鈥檛 leave Arlington without a party first. Seguin鈥檚 drumline, Star Line, and cheerleaders performed at the pep rally with big smiles and music to pump up the party.
鈥淚t鈥檚 an honor to work with the kids, and I can鈥檛 wait to work on some social skills, do team building and just have fun with them while we鈥檙e there,鈥 said Wendy Harvey, Special Olympics coach at Martin High School. 鈥淲e have the largest school district in North Texas participating in the competition, and it鈥檚 because our special education department is willing to fund our program so it doesn鈥檛 cost for kids. Just like any other athlete in the district has the opportunity to participate in sports, so do our special education kids.鈥
One unique factor about the program is three of the seven teams are unified, which means special and regular education students play on a team together. The regular education students help the game flow and provide peer support and build friendships on the team.
鈥淯nified teams show regular education students how to love on the kids, partner with them and be a voice for them,鈥 said Clarissa Huerta, 91制片厂 special education curriculum coordinator.
Opportunities like these give students with special needs the chance to build courage, develop physical fitness and make new friends along the way. It鈥檚 a win for everybody.
鈥淚 realized these kids needed more people to help and just be compassionate with them,鈥 said Martin freshman Cooper Dodson. 鈥淭o see the excitement on their faces when playing is everything to me. This is such a great program, and I know I want to be a part of it until I graduate.鈥
With support like this, the students were bound to come out with wins across the board, and that鈥檚 exactly what they did. Congratulations to our fearless students!