As the winter season comes to a close, Briar Woods is getting ready to start new sports. The new season brings along several sports such as tennis, softball, and lacrosse. Athletes are getting ready for tryouts and the upcoming season. 

One of the major spring sports at Briar Woods is tennis. Coach Rob Ellis has been coaching for four years and is the head varsity coach for girls tennis. The tryouts for tennis are being held from Feb. 21st-24th at 4:30 PM on the Briar Woods tennis courts. Time commitment is not much of an issue for tennis. Practices are often one hour to an hour and a half. Practices are often held two days a week and matches are often played two days a week. Ellis is looking for athletes who are able to carry out specific techniques.

“One key thing is your serve, your footwork. If you can’t serve or return a ball from a serve as far as moving quick enough then that’s a big key factor” said Ellis. 

Another major sport played at Briar Woods is lacrosse. Coach Kuzma is the head varsity lacrosse coach. She has been coaching for four years and is extremely excited to start coaching this season. The tryouts are from Feb. 20th-24th at 11:30 AM on the Briar Woods stadium turf. Before competitions, practices are five days a week. However when games start it will be three practices and two games a week. 

To determine who makes the team, Kuzma says “I look at skills, I look at their stick skills, I look at their endurance, their communication, how they are with the basics.”

Softball is another sport introduced in the spring season. Coach Andrew Hoehner is the varsity coach for softball . This year will be Hoehner’s second year as head coach. He is extremely excited about the upcoming season and to see what the athletes will accomplish. Tryouts are Feb. 20th-22nd at 4:45 PM. Softball practices often are between one and half to two hours and are often five days a week. 

“I am not a big fan of cutting players. If you want to learn and play the game, I and the coaches will help by teaching you what we know to put you in the best position to be competitive,” said Hoehner. 

Athletes are using the last week to practice and rest before the upcoming tryouts. Coaches are excited to see what the athletes will accomplish this season.

“My team loved Briar and I am excited to play them again next year!” said a varsity tennis player from Independence High School.