Offseason training at Jones has always been difficult because of the limited building hours and lack of space available in the school, but now Jones is trying its best to accommodate athletes through rearranging their hours to give teams more time to practice.
Many athletes see this as a major step in the right direction that will help them compete at a higher level.
“I think this significantly improves our readiness for next season because more time in the gym, especially as a team practicing and going through plays, will let us be that much more prepared,” said boys basketball player Elijah Milsap ‘28.
For basketball players out of season, it was hard to have access to the weight room and gym because it was always full of other sports teams using it, and there was no time with the building’s old hours.
“It was hard before the building changed hours because we had no time to go and get better inside of school,” said boys basketball player Landon Bermudez ‘28.
With the change coming in late Jan., the basketball team was able to use that extra time to propel them through the end of their season.
“I think that the extra time we had at the end of the season really boosted us and helped us finish the season strong,” said Bermudez.
This extra time that is being given by the school is helping the team prepare for their next season and improve in ways that may have been much harder before, giving Jones Athletics an advantage over other teams.
“Our team chemistry will continue to improve off of this, and generally, teams who practice more are better than those who don’t,” said Bermudez.
This extra time also allows for more time in the weight room, so the team can not only work on their skills but also get stronger in the offseason.
“For my personal offseason preparation, this will save me a little bit of money, allowing me to just stay at school instead of paying for passes to get into different gyms, and I can come up to the school gym with teammates and work together,” said Milsap.
Looking ahead to next year, other teams are very excited about the extra time they have been given for their upcoming season.
“The extra time will be able to help us compete at a higher level and allow us to practice more things,” said girls volleyball player Demi Rios ‘28. This change makes more athletes feel supported by their administrators to help them to thrive and reach their maximum potential as a program.
“I am very excited to hear the building is being opened later for athletics. I think it is a great idea for everyone involved and really makes me feel supported,” said Milsap.
Across the board, this change will help athletes from all different sports across Jones and will allow them to train harder in and outside of the season, lifting up the entirety of Jones sports.
“This is a big step in Jones athletics, because this will probably allow scheduling of practices to change so we aren’t sacrificing gym time and all the athletes still have time to finish school work before or after practice,” said Milsap.
