SPORTS 11
MONDAY, APRIL 5, 2021 THE DISPATCH
A fresh set of eyes on the track prize
Vickie Benson expands her expertise as a new track coach for the 2021 season Corinne Piorkowski Sports Editor
Coaching a sport requires many different skills to win games and form relationships with players. When coaching multiple sports, these skills have to be strategically applied to fit the new one, and requires a diligent person to complete the challenge. Vickie Benson is the head girls’ basketball coach, and in light of this year, has taken on a new coaching job for varsity track. “My favorite part about being a coach, specifically in high school, is that I get a chance to push and encourage young female athletes beyond what they think they are capable of,” Benson said. “I believe we all have more to give and that we should never settle for less than our best.” Benson has been a coach for basketball, volleyball, and track for 20 years, which makes her credible for athletes because of that experience. “I have always coached two sports during my time at Bowie since 2010,” Benson said. “Sports in high school for me was how I got through some really tough times.” In track, Benson helps out with various drills and workouts that are specifically designed to help runners in certain events. “Coach Benson joining has made practicing go by faster just because the coaches have extra hands to help with drills and stations,” junior runner Ashley Salas said. Specifically, Benson coaches the field events like long and triple jump in addition to helping out overall. “Most of the time, these
kids are really athletic, I just need to hone in on their technique,” Benson said. “They are usually pretty motivated to be really good, so I just need to help them figure out how to be their best.” In track, practices look slightly different than other sports, since it’s all outdoors and every person is practicing something different. “A typical track practice is we start at 5 p.m., we warm up and depending on the day we either have an easy workout with stations or sprints,” Salas said. “Right now I run the 4x200, open 200, 4x400, and sometimes the 4x100.” For the team, this year has required many adjustments, excluding adding a new coach to the staff. “This year has definitely been challenging for everyone, but practices have been different this year,” junior runner Ellie Dusterhoft said. “We have to wear our masks and run with them, which takes some getting used to.” Even though Benson has other coaching experience, there are big differences between coaching track and basketball. “Track is different because it is really easy to determine who runs or completes in different events,” Benson said. “In basketball it’s mainly based on judgment calls and who I think will produce from day to day from what I see in practice regularly; there are so many mental and physical components to work through in basketball.” Adding Benson to the track staff has allowed for more experience for the runners in practice and in meets. “Having Coach Benson at practice has helped me in
meets because of the drills she has introduced at practice,” Dusterhoft said. “As a hurdler, there are specific techniques needed to succeed and Coach Benson helps me achieve that.” From the runners’ perspectives, Coach Benson has adjusted well to being a new coach in their sport. “I think Coach Benson fits in great with the other coaches this year,” Salas said. “She is a multi-sport coach so it probably took no problem for her to fit in, as she already has experience working with athletes.” As a sport, track is one that is personal to each athlete and requires individual work to succeed among peers. “I started running hurdles in middle school and I have worked very hard to get onto varsity,” Dusterhoft said. “I have put in a lot of work to get where I am and I love the sport very much; I want to continue it for as long as I can.” At meets, there are many opportunities for runners to meet and interact in between races. “My favorite part about running track is the social aspect of it for sure,” Salas said. “Everyone there is so kind and relatable, the memories you get out of track practices and track meets are amazing.” For Benson, the experience of coaching a new sport has been both an unforgettable and beneficial one, especially during a pandemic and mostly remote learning. “I can’t imagine if I was coaching volleyball during this time and how I would have been able to give the basketball players my best effort,” Benson said. “I have
JUMPING FAR: Senior Abbey Smith completes a triple jump in the district track meet. Coach Benson specializes in coaching this event along with long jump and has helped these athletes place at this district meet. PHOTO BY Reagan Zuniga
enjoyed getting to know the track athletes; I’m thankful for the opportunity.” Overall, Benson finds joy in coaching high school student athletes and helping
them reach their fullest potential, even if they believe it is beyond reach. “I went into coaching because I wanted to challenge and inspire young athletes to
be more than they ever hoped or imagined they can be,” Benson said. “When you can wrap your mind around that, you are capable of so much more.”
Varsity basketball makes it to the third round of playoffs Luke Smith Dispatch Reporter
thing we’d been through.” The team also was able to put together some exciting highlights After making it to the third during their playoff run, which round of the playoffs, the boys bas- were broadcast on different social ketball season has come to a close. media platforms. They finished in third place in the “My favorite moment in the district behind Westlake and Lake playoffs would be when I stole the Travis. ball from a kid on San Antonio Towards the end of the season Judson in the second round of the and in the playoffs, there were playoffs and flushed on a fast break some truly incredible performanc- dunk,” senior forward LD Butler es. said. In Bowie’s last game of the regA team’s initial goal for the regular season, the Bulldogs defeated ular season was to make the playAustin High 69-51. In this game, offs and that’s what the varsity senior guard and Army basketball team accomplished with a collabocommit Coleton Benson scored 53 rative effort from both the coaches points. and the players. “It was crazy, it just felt like any“Advancing each round in the thing I shot was going in. I only playoffs gets a little more exciting missed four shots the whole game each time, even though the first too,” Benson said. “After the game game is always the toughest one I was just thinking to myself, wow, and beating Westwood 55-40 was I really just huge, and in the dropped 53.” second round, The incredibeating San Anble performance tonio Judson by Benson and It was a total team and scoring our the entire team season high of effort and a special shocked players, points was group of young men; I 84 fans and coaches a good feeling,” alike. believe I learned more Collier said. “That was an “In the third from them than they amazing night; round, we lost learned from me. one shot led to a heart-breaker the next and the at the buzzer players could to San Antonio Celester Collier feel Coleton in Clark 48-46, Head Coach the moment,” but I am still head coach Ceproud of how lester Collier the boys played said. “The bench and teammates all season.” were all excited and knew the ball In the whirl of craziness brought was going in; It was an amazing about in 2020 and 2021, with the performance and as a coach, I was pandemic among other setbacks, proud.” the varsity team prevailed and In the playoffs, Bowie defeated lasted in the playoffs among other Westwood in the first round and great teams. San Antonio Judson in the second “It was a fun season and a good round, but lost in the third round year, finishing 20-5 and going to to San Antonio Clark. the third round of the playoffs de“I’m really proud of us. We spite the adversity we had to go fought hard and did way better through with COVID-19 protocols than anyone would’ve thought we and the winter storm,” Collier said. would do,” Benson said. “We ob- “We couldn’t practice during the viously knew we could be success- winter storm week and practiced at ful this year and that’s why we did Hays High School while there was what we did this year; it was re- water damage at Bowie; the whole warding to see all of our hard work team was resilient.” pay off in the playoffs after everyThroughout the year, the perfor-
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NOTHING BUT NET: Senior varsity member Cade Holzman takes a shot against an opponent in one of the playoff games this year. The team went to three rounds of the playoffs before ultimately being eliminated. PHOTO COURTESY OF HD Flores
mance of individual players and the team overall improved, which is what a team hopes for at the beginning of a season. “Our defense was really good in the whole playoff series and we started playing our best basketball in the second half of district play,” Collier said. The team worked hard to overcome obstacles throughout the season. “The team’s biggest improve-
ment would be us learning how to play through adversity when things weren’t going our way,” Butler said. “Our defense improved; we became more aggressive and started to talk more, which helped us create a flow for offense.” With the conclusion of this season, the coaches will prepare to build new rosters as the senior players graduate and move on, which is a process the coaches are familiar with, even though it is dif-
ficult to let go of influential senior players. “It’s always the next man up; we lost a lot of good seniors the year before this, such as Riley McIntyre, Ethan Walker, Jayden York and Drew Dunsmore,” Collier said. “This is an opportunity for the next group to step up and a chance for this year’s juniors to step up.” With their experience, this year’s seniors can give advice, tell stories to, and ultimately prepare new juniors, sophomores, and freshmen of what it’s like to play varsity basketball and have a productive season like the team did this year. “What I’m going to miss most from Bowie basketball would be the thought of not being able to play one more game with my guys,” Butler said. “I love them a lot, and basketball has brought us closer together.” Team chemistry can develop friendships that last much longer than the time spent in long practices and on the court. “I’m going to miss Coach Collier, my teammates, and the culture of Bowie basketball,” Benson said. In the next couple of years, more changes will be coming to varsity basketball that will hopefully improve the team, allowing the players to improve even more every season. “I’m excited about getting an opportunity to play in the new gym next year,” Collier said. Older players can also reflect on key younger players for next season and evaluate how they are going to help lead the team to an even better season than the one that the team had this year. “My boys Branden Myart, Noah Vasquez, and all the other juniors will step up next season,” Benson said. The whole team, coaches, parents, and boosters worked long and hard hours to push forward through the obstacles of this year and make this basketball season memorable. “It was a total team effort and a special group of young men; I believe I learned more from them than they learned from me,” Collier said.
