Sports are a great way to relieve stress, stay in shape, and have fun. Along with high school sports offered here at McLean, our area also offers excellent private club teams. While both of these options are appealing, students sometimes have to pick one over the other or try to find a balance participating in both.
Club teams, especially at the high school level, are becoming extremely competitive and time consuming. It is through club teams such as McLean Travel Soccer or an AAU basketball team that many students can earn athletic scholarships, and these teams can have up to 3 practices a week. This eats up a lot of time along with homework and other after school interests.
If students decide to play a high school sport in addition to a club team, that takes up even more time during the season. “High school is every day after school so during the season it’s more time consuming,” senior Johan Ketkar said. Ketkar has played both club soccer and high school for the past three years. “[Playing both] really tests my time management as well as I get really tired, it’s hard to wake up sometimes.”
For student-athletes that are trying to play their sport in college, club teams give them greater opportunities for athletic college scholarships. “To me, for high school, fun is the primary purpose while club is more focused on getting recruited.” Ketkar said. “My club team was players that practice together all year and their focus is on development rather than on winning.”
Junior Carolyn Brown-Kaiser plays on a competitive club gymnastics team, along with the varsity high school team. “I usually prioritize club gymnastics over high school,” Brown-Kaiser said. “Club is overall more competitive than high school, but when it comes to regionals and states, high school gymnastics can also be extremely competitive and challenging.”
Since starting high school, Brown-Kaiser has also noted that there are major differences with equipment between club and high school gymnastics. “Club gymnastics allows you to compete on a floor with springs underneath it, whereas the high school floor is only a thin mat.” Brown-Kaiser said. “Competing on a floor without springs really limits the skills that high school gymnasts can perform in comparison to what they do in club gymnastics.”
For most high school sports, the seasons are brief and only come once a year. Club teams, by contrast, often have practices and games year round. Because the high school season is so short, some students prioritize their high school team if both seasons overlap.
“High school games I give the highest priority casue there’s only around 13 of them,” Ketkar said. “I prioritize high school because I am not trying to play in college and my club career is kind of winding down.”
Whether students choose to develop their skills on a competitive club team or represent their school on a high school team, both options provide the opportunities to relieve stress, stay in shape, have fun, and possibly earn scholarships.

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