“PSAL Winter Sports” by Beatrix Worthington ’25

The winter sports season has just begun, and for those not currently trying out or on a team, Bard offers the following sports: Girls and boys varsity basketball, girls and boys varsity table tennis, and Co-ed wrestling. The Bard sports teams are shared with the two other schools in our building complex: the Academy of Finance and Enterprise (AoFE) and High School of Applied Communications (HSAC). According to Mr. Garcia, the coach of the boys table tennis team, this blend of three schools “cohesively balances out all the sports that are offered,” and benefits both the teams and the schools they play for. This season is an exciting one for Bard – according to Garcia, “winter sports is probably the best season we have because there’s opportunities to do more than one sport.” 

Interviewing BHSEC Queens gym teachers and coaches Jon Leizman (coach of the girls basketball team) and Martin Garcia Bravo, I was able to get insight into the challenges that Bard faces during sports seasons, and how our coaches work to overcome these obstacles. In a primarily academic-focused school, such as Bard, it is often difficult to be “disciplined” and “know that you are going to sports practice more than once or twice a week.” Both Garcia and Leizman emphasize the value of balance between school and sports, how committing to a sport requires “hard work and determination.” In the end, Garcia says, “pushing yourself to what you think your abilities are” is the most important thing. Trying “to push you to be the best version of you that I can,” is the philosophy in all sports he coaches.

Credit: Bard Early Colleges

As a small school in New York City, “space is at a premium,” says Leizman, “and there’s not much we can really do about it.” We simply don’t have enough room for a gymnastics or swim team, for example, which can be frustrating for the coaches and athletes of Bard. Schools located further into boroughs such as Queens, Brooklyn, and the Bronx “tend to have big spacing, because there’s that land that could be used. But once you get to the inner city … there isn’t a lot of land available to build these [gymnasiums].” Being located in Long Island City, “we are at a disadvantage,” says Garcia, where it’s difficult to get to the far ends of each borough. Leizman points out the reality that sometimes “we have to scramble,” and “find space anywhere we can.” However, this practice of finding resources when and where we can helps to develop a team that understands the importance of hard work, and according to Leizman, “it makes us better and closer as a team that we have these hurdles to overcome.” Leizman stresses that “we don’t make excuses, we can’t feel sorry for ourselves. We have to get up early. We just do it and then it becomes a habit,” which makes for the most successful teams.

Leizman emphasizes that these teams require more awareness and “promoting on a consistent basis,” to get people who might be interested to “try out and join a team.” If you are someone who’s been wondering about winter sports and has considering joining, Leizman, Garcia and the other coaches strongly encourage you to do so; they are “always looking for new people.”


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