In this issue of Viking Tries, we decided to put our athleticism to the test by completing different drills in sports that we aren’t familiar with. Six different members of the Viking staff came out to play; Victoria Soulodre (‘21) and Phoebe Kim (‘22) swapped softball and lacrosse, Jackson Bundy (‘21) and Jenna Hickey (‘21) swapped football and gymnastics, and Adar Schwarzbach (‘21) and Annika Shah swapped wrestling and basketball. We ranked each other’s performance out of five stars based on three different categories; effort, execution, and overall gameplay. Here’s how it went. 

Jackson Bundy and Jenna Hickey

While both football and gymnastics require an immense amount of athleticism and strength, we put them to the test and see if they could translate any of their skills over to the other sport. Bundy started off the swap by attempting to do a basic somersault. With Jenna’s coaching and supervision, Bundy started off on the right foot. “For someone who isn’t that flexible, I was doing my job” said Bundy. After Bundy’s amazing attempt at sommer saults and handstands, Hickey attempted to learn some football skills from one of the best. “Football is a lot more technical than I thought it was” said Hickey. “It takes a lot more work than you would think.”

Bundy received 4 stars for effort, 2.5 stars for execution, and 4 stars for overall gameplay, while Hickey received 4.5 stars for effort, 3.5 stars for execution, and 4 stars for overall gameplay.

Adar Schwarzbach and Annika Shah

Wrestling and basketball, Although both sports require game IQ, skill, and patience, these two sports differentiate greatly. Shah began the swap by attempting to execute wrestling footwork and technique drills. 

“Wrestling is very technical and mental, I gained a lot of respect for wrestlers” said Shah. 

Once Shah demolished the skills Adar had taught her, they moved on over to the court.

“Once we got onto the court, my natural killer instinct came out, the inner beast took over” said Schwarzbach.

Schwarzbach received 5 stars for effort, 5 stars for execution, and 5 stars for overall gameplay and Shah received 5 stars for effort, 5 stars for execution, and 5 stars for overall gameplay. 

Victoria Soulodre and Phoebe Kim

Girl’s lacrosse and softball are both non-contact sports that require extensive skill and precision. In order to determine each other’s athletic prowess, we created targets for us to hit. This would help us decide who had the better accuracy, execution, and technique. Kim began the swap by attempting to hit softballs off of a tee with as much power and speed as possible. After a couple of attempts at bat, we shifted over to throwing. “I was surprised at how quickly Phoebe was able to pick up the sport, she was throwing far after only a couple minutes” said Soulodre. Kim got her chance, now it was time for Soulodre to face lacrosse for the first time.

“I realized softball is very similar to lacrosse in the catching aspect, except you trade a stick for a glove. Victoria got the hang of shooting and catching after a few attempts and I think she will definitely be the next Paly lax star” said Kim. As for Kim, “she definitely could come out and play on the field, her skills are promising and overall she’s a great player” said Soulodre.

Kim received 5 stars for effort, 4.5 stars for execution, and 5 stars for overall gameplay, while Soulodre received 5 stars for effort, 3.5 stars for execution, and 4 stars for overall gameplay.