The Parker homecoming games of the 2022 fall season have concluded. The Junior Varsity and Varsity volleyball, soccer, and field hockey teams played on September 23 and September 24 at Parker during the prime of the fall season.

Parker parent Leisl Olsen had a chance to experience Parker’s true homecoming spirit on the sidelines as she watched her son play in the junior varsity soccer games. 

“I love watching Teddy play with all of his teammates,” Olsen said. “The great thing about soccer is that it is such a team sport, so it is really fun to watch with all of the other parents and teachers on the sidelines because you are really watching all of the boys that work together. Another reason why it is so great to go early in the morning is because you get Chef Zach’s awesome breakfast burritos.”

The Parker soccer teams all played on the Parker turf Saturday morning. The Junior White Varsity team won 1-0, and the Junior Blue Varsity team lost 2-0. What was possibly the biggest soccer game on the  Colonels’ schedule, resulted in a 2-0 loss to Latin.The team was unhappy after taking a loss in one of the biggest games of the year. Despite losing, Assistant Varsity Coach Patrick Stanton has seen improvement from these players compared to last year. 

“This team is a much more tactical team in terms of, if we keep the ball on the ground we can really spread it around moving quickly, switch the field, switch the point of attack, and play with calm and confidence on the ball,” Stanton said. A lot of guys have stepped up for us in big moments who I’m really proud of. Senior Max Keller has been outstanding as our defending central midfielder, stepping into the role of an injured Emre Emanet.”

 Stanton wanted the team to win, which would have added to the team’s best start to a season in seven years. 

“We weren’t really able to set into our game.” Stanton said. “On homecoming we have a tendency to let the moment get to us. We have a tendency to play the other team’s game instead of settling in and playing our game. One of the things I said to Coach Wolf (Junior Blue Varsity Head Coach) around halfway through the first half was, it was the quietest I had ever heard the field. The bench was quiet, the players on the field were quiet across both teams. There was a level of tension across the field palatable across the field. Unfortunately, we were unable to really settle the ball and play our style which would have led to better success.”

Mia Vitacek played homecoming sports for the first time this year on the Junior Varsity field hockey team. Even though the team didn’t win, Vitacek is determined to improve as a player and also wants to see the team develop.

 “As a player, I want to improve everything,” Vitacek said. “After the game, I really thought about it, and there is still so much to improve personally and on our team. While we have been doing a lot of conditioning and running, we haven’t been putting that to good use, and I think after having to practice so much and all the skills we have learned, we can easily make that improvement.”

Even though the team lost, Vitacek commended the Parker community for coming out to the game. “Since we lost and it was pretty cold, I would say that the only good part of it was having more people watching and cheering. It helped bring the team’s energy up,” Vitacek said.

Senior and captain of the volleyball team, Samara Boyd, was sidelined for the homecoming game due to injury, but still loved what she saw from her teammates during the game.

“We played very well and had great communication,” Boyd said. “The energy that we put on the court that day topped a lot of other games and the fact that it was our homecoming game really made us come through and communicate with each other and work for the win we got.”

Samara also has words of advice for underclassmen working hard to have a role like captain in the future.

“Don’t be scared to be yourself at practice,” Boyd said. “I see the volleyball team as a family and not just a team. A family doesn’t work if nobody wants to open up and be themselves. 

The Parker golf team played a match against Latin at Sydney Marovitz Golf Course, and took a loss. The girls tennis match event was canceled due to an opponent cancellation, so they participated in an exhibition match against their parents.