With the school year quickly coming to a close, athletic summer camps are set to begin at the end of the May at MCHS. They are a chance for the coaches to get a feel for the future athletes that may play on their rosters.

The camps range from the end of May to the end of July, with a total of 19 total camps for students from first grade to twelfth grade. The earliest camp to begin is baseball for tenth to twelfth grade, and begins on May 30 and the last camp to take place is boys soccer from 24 to 28 of July.

The camps are specifically designed for the players to showcase their skills to the coaches, and are important because most of the things focused on in the camp are skills that cannot be focused on as much when the actual season starts. It is important for players to attend the camps so the coaches can get an evaluation of players before the season starts, and to show growth throughout the summer to the winter.

“Attending the summer camp is important because it gives the coaches an opportunity to evaluate players for next year’s team,” Brian Rockweiler, the baseball head coach and teacher at MCHS, explained. “We use it (summer camp) as an extension of our spring season and to prepare our team for the following year. With weather in the spring not the greatest, we use the summer to practice a lot of things like cut-offs and situations that we can’t do inside a gym in early spring.”

Baseball isn’t the only camp that uses evaluations to get a feel for what their players can do during the following seasons. Football camp, which runs from June fifth to July twentieth, includes aspects such as strength, speed training and metrics to get a feel on the overall fitness of their players.

“Areas of focus include general physical preparedness with Coach Beerbower, classroom, on field, and video instruction,” explained Tim Beagle, an assistant coach and teacher at MCHS. “Attending camp is extremely beneficial in the path to success. Coaches are looking for attitude and effort. The two variables that each of us can control. Everyday is a new challenge, how we face it and work through it is often the difference between a happy success and failure.”

While the football summer camp’s main focus is physically based, the volleyball summer camp, which runs from July 10-20 mainly focuses on individual skills, team skills, nutrition and health, and strength and conditioning. Assistant Volleyball Coach and teacher, Alexandra Thompson, feels the camp is important for the process of team chemistry to build upon the team, and the opportunities to learn new things that the camp offers.

“The camp gives athletes an opportunity to come together to prepare for the season in a fun and encouraging environment. No matter what skill level athletes are at, everyone can improve,” Thompson explained.

Summer camps hosted by MCHS are important for athletes to attend for many different reasons. They can provide athletes with practice, important skills out of the sport, build team relationships, and many more.