Being an athlete on varsity is a big deal, but when you’re the youngest, certain tasks can get even more challenging.

Freshman Carly Torbit is the only freshman on varsity girls tennis, but because of this, playing at a more competitive and harder level makes it even more difficult, especially only playing for two years.

“I think I made varsity because of my strokes, I got to the ball quickly and I had good sportsmanship,” Torbit said.

In middle school, her dad encouraged her to try tennis because Torbit has always been an athlete, doing other sports such as cheerleading and tumbling. She fell in love with the game instantly and being the fast learner that she is, she quickly became extremely good at the sport.

But with every athlete comes with some weakness. She believes that she can always improve on her strokes and ball placement. With her constant practicing and tenacity, she believes that she will greatly improve by the end of her high school career.

According to Torbit, the key to being successful in tennis is, “participating well with high pressure, having persistence, not slacking and being friendly to teammates.”

Just like everyone, Torbit still has some good and bad moments and one match sticks out to her in particular. After losing the first set 6-7, she realized that she was not playing her best and immediately overcame her first defeat and was now determined to win her match.

Being at the top of her game, she won the second set 6-1, but there still had to be a tiebreaker. There was a constant back and forth between the two rivals, but Torbit eventually came out victorious, winning the final set 14-13 to what was suppose to be only a 10 point tiebreaker, proving that all athletes have occasional off games, but the best are the ones that conquer those obstacles.

Torbit hopes to continue her tennis career in college with an athletic scholarship, and at this rate, she will.

Other freshmen athletes have similar experiences and goals as Torbit, such as freshman Ben Meyer, who is one of two freshman in Liberty history to make varsity boys soccer.

Meyer, a center midfielder, loves the game of soccer and uses it as a stress reliever. Having played the game for ten years, Meyer has developed a great sense of how exactly the game works, which can be hard for the most experienced players and he uses that to his advantage. Just because Meyer plays a prominent role for his team doesn’t mean that he never faces challenges.

“Being on varsity is challenging because I’m playing against people that are faster, bigger and stronger,” Meyer said.

With the great chemistry between the team, knowledge on how each teammate plays and everyone’s exceptional talent, Meyer hopes that they will make it to state in his upcoming seasons. Like every team, there will be some room needed for improvement, whether that be communication or finishing on goal.

“We talk back to the refs and complain on certain calls,” Meyer said. This issue can easily be resolved, and when it is, it will make the team even more successful and maybe Meyer will attain his main goal for his high school soccer career.

The class of 2022 displays incredible athletic talent, which is evident in these two individuals. Both Torbit and Meyer show exceptional ability in their sports, even though at times it is tougher for them compared to their older teammates. While they may have advanced skill, they all believe that with hard work and dedication, they could become even better and maybe set the example for anyone that has the same goals.