Game Day

Get ready for game day with Laguna’s top athletes.

WORDS by ALEXANDRA SIEGEL and ELLI WESTMACOTT ART by CLAIRE TOLLES and ALEXANDRA SIEGEL

This winter, athletes from both soccer and basketball have busy seasons lined up. In preparation for gameday, athletes have their individual pregame routines that help showcase their skills.

Junior Jenna Johnson and senior Foster Smith share their personal routines that best prepare them for gameday.

Q: What is the first thing you do in preparation for a game? A: First I get dressed in proper attire. I put on my cleats, then I put pre-wrap on my forehead.

Q: Do you have a specific food or drink that you prefer before games? A: I usually don’t eat before a game at all even if it’s in the morning. I feel like it just hurts my stomach, so I just don’t eat or drink anything beforehand. But after a game, I have blue Gatorade, which has to be blue, because I hate other types of Gatorade.

Q: What exercise drill best prepares you for a game? A: Probably little sprints we do with our coach at Laguna. I also do those for my club and that really helps. Q: Are there any full-team traditions you do before or after a game? What are the best team bonding activities? A: For my club team, when we go in a huddle, we all have to touch our toes—even the coach does it! For team bonding activities with my club, when we go on tournaments, we rent out a house and we stay there and we have dinners together, so that’s really good bonding.

Q: What are your favorite hype up songs? A: I listen to my sister, Sadie’s, soccer playlist that she made for the team. Currently, my favorite song on the playlist is “Pursuit of Happiness” by Kid Cudi.

Q: How do you take care of your body before a game? A: I have a hip injury, so I usually tape my hip with KT-Tape, or put creams on my hip and take three Advil.

Q: What’s your favorite memory before or during a game from this season so far? A: My freshman year, we were on the way to a far-away game and our bus broke down! We had to stop at a gas station and we were 20 minutes late to the game. My mom was driving behind us and had to come pick us up and we all had to fit in this small little car to bring us to the game. That was funny.

Junior Jenna Johnson started playing for Laguna freshman year.

Q: What is the first thing you do in preparation for a game? A: Well, first, I have to drink a lot of water, because the more water you drink before a game the more energetic you’re going to be. The entire day I’m not the same around my friends because I’m preparing and have to zone in and understand what the end goal is and manifest what I want to happen.

Q: Do you have a specific food or drink that you prefer before games? If so, why? A: Anything that’s a lot of carbs; I usually like rice and chicken because it gives me the balance of protein and carbs so I can have as much energy as possible.

Q: Do you have any superstitious rituals that you do in preparation for a game? A: I have to have my pregame music because that gets me in the spirit. I feel like most kids that are in athletics do, but it’s extremely important. One that’s always been my favorite that has a little history behind it is “Champion” by Nas, because ever since I was a freshman it is the pregame song that the entire team would listen to before our games.

Q: Are there any full-team traditions you do before or after a game? What are the best team bonding activities? A: There’s no real tradition I remember, but getting dinner after the games is something we do now and always have done. It’s a great way to get closer with your teammates because after a win or loss it’s your time to reflect on that with your guys. Q: What exercise or drill best prepares you for a game? A: I would say that line drill, as they call it now, is important because it works on your conditioning which is very important for basketball because its a lot of running.

Q: What’s your favorite memory from your high school basketball career? A: I’d say my best memory has been making the playoffs with my team as a sophomore because it was very special. We went to a tiebreaker game, if anyone remembers, it’s a big shot, so it was a great memory that will stick with me forever.

Q: What NBA players do you look up to and take inspiration from? Why? A: One of my favorites is Lebron James—of course one the best. He’s known to be a winner. To look up to someone as talented as him is pretty great.

Q: What basketball shoes do you wear and why do you like them? A: My favorite shoes, in general, are Adidas basketball shoes because they are very comfortable and durable. I can’t wear Nike because they’re too heavy.

Q: Does your jersey number have a specific meaning to you? A: My jersey number is the number 2. That’s what I’ve had since I was a freshman, so I have to make sure that it is my number every year or else it won’t feel the same. Senior Foster Smith is a captain for Laguna’s boys basketball team.