Winter Student-Athlete Spotlight
Live Oak recently recognized two student-athletes with the Winter Student-Athlete Spotlight. Eighth graders Maya Gopal and Enso Mitchell, who participated in Live Oak basketball this year, were recognized for their hard work and leadership skills in the classroom and in athletics. Maya and Enso were interviewed about their thoughts on academics and athletics. Read their interviews below.
Maya G.
Q: Have you had teammates that have made you a better athlete / Have you had classmates who have made you a better student?
A: My teammates and classmates Chloe and Hope have made me a better athlete during the volleyball and futsal seasons because they always help me do my best, teach me new things and support me, and they help me be a better student in the same way.
Q: What facet of being a teammate do you find the most similar in both fields?
A: As a teammate you have to look out for your other teammates, support them, and help them improve. Similarly, in academics, you have to help your classmates and support them.
Q: What is similar between academics and athletics?
A: You have to work hard and practice/study to improve at both.
Q: What is your favorite subject?
A: My favorite subject is humanities.
Q: What is your favorite sport?
A: My favorite sport to play is basketball.
Enso M.
Q: Do you find yourself working equally hard in both athletics and academics? If not, which one do you work harder at?
A: I think that I put my full effort into both athletics and academics. In athletics I think it’s all about focus, reaction and continuing to move but in academics it’s all about thinking critically about things and answering questions.
Q: What do you find to be the most challenging aspect of academics?
A: I think executive functions like remembering to do things on time, finish them, improvise, and try not to overthink things.
Q: What is your favorite sport?
A: My favorite sport is soccer because you are working as a team. You can’t just say one goal is because of one person. In a sport like basketball and futsal, one person can dribble through everyone and score, but in soccer someone has to pass to someone who shoots it.
Q: What is your favorite subject?
A: My favorite subject is humanities because it’s all about thinking about something critically and trying to expand what you're thinking about it.
Q: Do you have an academic or athletic role model? If so, who is it and why?
A: Yes, an academic role model. There’s an archaeologist named Albert Lynn who got in a car crash and got his leg amputated above the knee so it made things a lot harder for him, but he continued to do things like climb mountains which showed his perseverance.
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