During the school year, students are found hard at work on the fields, on the track, in the gym, and on the tennis courts throughout the fall, winter, and spring seasons. But what about during the summer? The athletes at Southern Lehigh stay hard at work during the off-season by participating in summer leagues and club sports in preparation for the school year.

The girls soccer team plays in the Lehigh Valley Summer Soccer League at Lehigh University from early June to mid-July. Southern Lehigh enters two of the 25 teams, a freshmen and sophomore team and a junior and senior team, with both of them playing on Monday and Wednesday nights. The league is run by former Liberty High School coach Mr. Cal Sarcozi. Last year Southern Lehigh ended the summer victoriously and finished in first place.

In addition to the summer league, the girls team also trains on Tuesday and Thursday mornings. After an hour of strength training, the team heads over to the park to practice kicking, running, and skills.

“During the kick arounds they are really run by the captains,” physical education teacher and girls soccer coach Mr. Doug Roncolato said. “It’s a good introduction to the ninth graders [so they learn] what the sport is all about and the level that they need to train.”

Meanwhile, the swim team dives in at the Southern Lehigh Community Pool (SOLECO). Nearly all the members of the Spartans boys and girls teams participate, making Southern Lehigh one of many schools competing in the league.

The team practices weekday mornings from 7:30 to 9:00 a.m., with meets weekdays in the evenings.

“It’s a lot of fun,” junior Angela Burns said. “Usually, we go and warm up in the pool. They call events, so when it’s your event you go up and swim. Then you pretty much just hang out with friends. They have snack stands and food so you can eat and just wait for your next event.”

The team competes against other community pools from all over the Lehigh Valley to bond and prepare for the winter swim season.

Finally, the Southern Lehigh field hockey team can be found on the fields of Whitehall during the summer months. Approximately half of the team participates in this league, which runs from the end of May until the beginning of July. Southern Lehigh competes with talented teams throughout the EPC Conference, playing games every Tuesday night.

“We prepare for upcoming season by pushing ourselves to be the best players we can be in the off-season during these games and practices,” sophomore Madeline Arnold said. “These practices and games are taken seriously because we’re constantly pushing ourselves very hard towards [getting] in shape, winning, and making Coach Searfoss proud in the fall.”

A typical game includes ten players and a goalie, and the athletes compete on turf, rather than the grass of the regular season. In addition to the league, the team captains hold practices every Monday, Wednesday, and Thursday.

All of these students dedicate time to their sports this summer to prepare for the fall and winter seasons.

“It just keeps you in shape,” Burns said. “It’s really good to do because you are with most of your friends from the winter season and it’s good team bonding for in between seasons.”