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Sports are what high schools all over the country revolve around. It has been that way for decades. And in a small town like Paducah, high school sports are an even bigger deal. Members from all over the community come out to support their alma maters or their favorite teams to victory. They love being decked out in school gear, and they love the rivalries between the teams more than anything.

It is a lot of pressure for anyone coming into such a developed tradition like high school basketball. Having to make sure that you don’t disappoint anyone and that you are ready for all of the attention can be very stressful for any new player, especially freshmen. But it is also a great honor. Freshman girl basketball player Ashton Rudy explained, “It means a lot to play for my school and represent the letters on my chest!” Pride for themselves and their team are a big thing for these girls. They realize that not all schools have equal female sports programs as male and that McCracken is a school where there are so many opportunities to succeed in whatever you put your heart and mind to. Ashton continued proudly, “Being at McCracken makes me thankful to be a part of such a team that can be from three different schools and still be a family.” The community of Mustang Nation is something that the entire region of Paducah can see and even be a part of.

Sports, especially basketball, are activities that the passion for begins at a young age. Mary Beavers, another freshmen girl’s basketball player stated that her love for the game stems from her family’s love for the sport. “I realized I loved the sport when I was about seven years old playing outside with my brother and my grandfather.”

McCracken County High School has created a reputation in the community and with the surrounding schools. In the last four years, we have shown that we are one of the best in everything that we are a part of. This is especially true with our athletic department. Since the beginning, our athletes have shown that if you work hard and you have a family working equally as hard around you, you can succeed and reach all of your dreams. “I would love to see us win regionals and even go beyond that. I believe we definitely have the drive and the talent to win on our team, and I think that our freshmen definitely bring a lot to this team. If we work hard and push each other as hard as we can, we will succeed,” Marlee Morehead, freshmen basketball player commented.
We, not only as a school but as Mustang Nation have accomplished so much in our first few years. And if we have accomplished this much in that short of a time, imagine how much we will accomplish in 10, 20, or even 30 years. We should support all of our sports teams and departments in their efforts to challenge and grow themselves. So let’s band together for our girl’s basketball team and help them be successful in all of their efforts.