More Than a Game

...almost live blogging from the Melrose Permanent Scholarship Fund breakfast at the Masonic classroomA large contingent of Lady Raider V-ballers turned out for the annual scholarship breakfast, hosted this year by the Masons and sponsored in large part by Johnnie's Foodmaster.

I had only a couple of words for the girls about Monday's contest at Central, "have fun, everything else takes care of itself."

Not every team enjoys a winning season, a league championship, or deep playoff runs. But every player on every team can share the benefits of team sports. The Womens' Sports Foundation summarizes them.

In addition to physical and mental health benefits, consider the following:

Sport is where boys have traditionally learned about teamwork, goal-setting, the pursuit of excellence in performance and other achievement-oriented behaviors—critical skills necessary for success in the workplace. In an economic environment where the quality of our children's lives will be dependent on two-income families, our daughters cannot be less prepared for the highly competitive workplace than our sons. It is no accident that 80% of the female executives at Fortune 500 companies identified themselves as former "tomboys"—having played sports.

And furthermore:

"I will" equals "I can."
Boys playing sports are taught that being "good at a position" is a function of the will to achieve and working on the basic skills required for that position. They also learn that you need to play the position in order to become adept at that position. Thus, boys grow up thinking that they can achieve anything they commit themselves to achieving. It is not an inflated ego or an accident that men apply for jobs for which we may think them underqualified. It is simply that they have been trained to believe that they "can" meet a new challenge of a new position and can learn by doing. Women, on the other hand, believe that advancing to a new position requires certification, classroom training, degrees or something tangible that says "I am qualified," in addition to being confident that they can meet the demands of a new position. If they haven't played sports, they haven't had as much experience with the trial-and-error method of learning new skills and positions and are less likely to be as confident as their male counterparts about trying something new.

Our young women scholar-athletes have earned the respect and esteem from the community not only for their success but for the way they represent themselves and our community. The girls volleyball team helps put Melrose, the second smallest city in Massachusetts, on the map. They're winners every time they step out on the court.