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Lafayette Journal and Courier Their last hurrahs February 4, 200
"I don't know how I will feel when it is over," said Lafayette Jeff's Darrin Hinkel, who plays tennis and basketball but is undecided on a college. "I think about it a little bit, but it won't set in until March when we are not playing anymore. When I come home after school and say 'What am I going to do?' " Hinkel and many other student-athletes have been mainstays on their high school teams but were not the elite athletes. Even though they could continue to compete at the Division III or NAIA level, they are choosing not to play sports beyond high school. They realize there are other obstacles to overcome in life other than trying to break a 1-3-1 zone press, slicing a half-second off a 100-yard freestyle time or escaping from a potential pin in wrestling. There are theories to prove, business solutions to learn, term papers to write and final exams to master. Such challenges in college, in the work force and in life will be a bit easier thanks to the mental and physical skills developed while participating in high school athletics. "You have to learn to balance time when you do sports and other activities," said Central Catholic swimmer Mary Rush, a senior who plans to enroll in Purdue's Krannert School of Management in the fall. "Sports taught me about teamwork. It taught me to work hard even if you don't feel like it. Those are all things I will use when I go to college and then after." Alan Smith, an associate professor of kinesiology at Purdue and co-director of Boilermaker Sport and Performance Psychology Services, says playing high school athletics can help develop self-awareness, ability to respond to pressure, goal-setting and time management skills. "There are potential benefits, but the key theme is the carry over is not automatic," said Smith, who is also director of the Sport and Health Psychology Laboratory at Purdue. "Everybody is of a different aptitude as they head into college. These are not benefits that you will see in everyone." Smith said there is no research available to determine if those who play high school sports have an advantage entering college over non-athletes. "Arguably there are other activities that can also provide these skills," he said.
As the student-athletes prepare for life without competitive sports, so too are their parents. The end will be especially poignant for Hinkel's father, Ron, a former two-sport standout athlete at Lafayette Jeff who will watch his son play for the final time in Crawley Center during the upcoming boys basketball sectional. "He is smart enough to understand he is not going to play for the rest of his life," Ron said. "I'm very proud of him; he has put it into perspective. He has done the best he can and that is all we can ask from him. He has gained valuable experience." It is the overall experience that has been more satisfying to Dr. Liz Droege, whose son, Ian Jones, is concluding his athletic career as a member of the West Lafayette boys swimming team. Sure, Droege has cheered her son to victory every time he was in a meet, but that outcome was less important to her compared to what Jones was able to accomplish outside the pool. "I think that he has made a lot of friends and has learned a lot of what the value of a team is," said Droege, a physician in Monticello. "To me that is the most important thing. I like him to do well and win, but I like even more watching him grow. "He used to be a very individual person. l like that he has become an integral part of the team even more than watching him. I am more interested in the things that he has gotten out of sports that aren't sports." Rick Peckinpaugh, the dean of area boys basketball coaches with 21 seasons spent at McCutcheon and 27 overall, appreciates the hard work and devotion put forth by someone who understands his athletic career will end in high school. "That is a special kid who plays hard in practices and games, yet doesn't have the talent but is still giving 100 percent," he said. "You enjoy having that kid. We have had a few of those. Those are the type of kids who make it enjoyable to coach." Darrin Hinkel, who cites earning all-state honorable mention honors in tennis last fall as one of his high school highlights, doesn't have any regrets about ending his athletic career. "I will miss it to a certain extent," said Hinkel, who plans to major in biology. "It has taught me a lot about responsibility, determination and work ethic. But I am ready to move on with my life and pursue other opportunities, academic and otherwise." |