Eagle Era

The impact of mental strength on individual and group sports

By Kaitlyn Liu

While on the outside, stamina, technique, and physical strength are highly important factors that differentiate between players of varying skill levels, one overlooked aspect of school sports is mental strength. Athletes’ responses to pressure and expectations are critical to developing their games, aiding themselves, and potentially helping out other teammates.

For team sports such as cheer and soccer, athletes are required to hold themselves accountable for their own performances in order to benefit their teammates. Wanzhi Li (11) is in her second year on the cheer team, where she is currently the backspot. Being in a group sport, Li believes that confidence and focus play a large role in performance. “There’s always this fear that you might mess up, especially in cheer because we do a lot of stunting,” she said. “It’s important for us to constantly be in the right mindset to guarantee the safety of everyone.” 

Similar to cheer, soccer also relies heavily on team chemistry. Ishanvi Putta (11), who plays on AHS’s soccer team and runs for cross country and track, is not a stranger to the pressure to perform well in sports. “In soccer, it’s really important to be mentally strong on the field,” said Putta. “You may be one goal down with less than 10 minutes left. You could have a referee who doesn’t make calls in your favor. Players from the other team could be acting aggressively or trash-talking you. You cannot let any of that affect your focus on the game.”

Li displayed her cheering abilities with a big smile plastered across her face, pom-poms in hand (Photo Credit: Hazel Lucero (11)).

Li noted that her coaches stress the importance of attitude through constant reminders. “They encourage us to appreciate the little moments, to just try our best, and to work hard,” she said.

Putta said that the soccer coaches also greatly emphasize mental strength. “Our coach encourages us before games to get into the ‘black mamba mentality,’ as he puts it, and to put in our best every single day—whether we’re practicing or playing against other teams.”

Li acknowledged a time when she was able to complete one of the stunts she was struggling with by changing her mindset. “During nationals last year, I was really anxious about competing since I thought I would mess up this one stunt which I kept messing up. After staying positive, practicing, and doing whatever I could, it ended up helping me because I felt more reassured in my abilities.”

Even on days when she feels she is underperforming, Li reminds herself to stay positive by repeating uplifting phrases. “I just mainly tell myself that practice is good for me, and it’s beneficial for my performance. Besides, what’s the point of performing if you don’t practice?”

Aaliyah Wolfe (10), who has competed in track, cross country, and wrestling for the last 2 years, emphasized the importance of getting into the right mindset. “If you give up before you start, you have sealed your fate,” she said.

Wolfe believes that mental strength, similar to physical strength, can be conditioned. “Mindset is definitely something you can train by putting yourself in uncomfortable positions and learning to push through.”

As the winter season draws to a close, confidence and mindset play an ever-increasing role, marking the difference between potential league titles and crushing losses. As Wolfe said, “Mental strength is a huge factor in determining whether or not you win.”