HOLLAND TWP. — Lucy Borski’s eyes are all the time in movement.
Being an undersized athlete, she has to see the complete subject, courtroom and scope of what’s going on round her.
It has labored for her on the sector, on the courtroom and within the classroom, giving the West Ottawa senior a singular legacy to go away her youthful teammates in a number of sports activities.
“I’m not the largest, strongest or tallest on the market, so to compete with ladies larger, stronger, quicker than you, you must assume quicker than them. That has performed such an enormous half in what I do,” Borski stated.
Borski stands 5 toes, three inches, and along with wanting on the scope of the sector, is consistently wanting up at gamers generally practically a foot taller.
That makes her accomplishments as a starter on the soccer workforce and basketball workforce extra spectacular (her top doesn’t consider to her {golfing} the identical approach, however she is a robust golfer, too).
“I believe it’s cool to look again and take into consideration every little thing I’ve completed in my life. I used to be capable of finding success in numerous sports activities by considering extra and taking part in more durable. It’s positively mindset. It’s not simply considering forward however eager to assume forward. It’s not simply working laborious, it’s eager to work laborious,” Borski stated. “Assume laborious. Play laborious. I’m quicker than some, however not as tall as most. Discovering a special technique to play and discover a approach when folks didn’t assume that I might means quite a bit.”
Borski thought laborious and labored laborious within the classroom as properly, incomes the Michigan Excessive Faculty Athletic Affiliation Scholar-Athlete Award.
“If you put within the work, you may be profitable. I’ve all the time tried my finest in class,” she stated. “In sports activities, I’m going to each exercise, each open gymnasium, each apply I might go to. Placing within the further effort and dealing as laborious as you’ll be able to is what I’d wish to depart behind.”
Borski was a beginning guard for the basketball workforce, which had a robust season. As a junior, she had a robust soccer season as a midfielder and ahead, scoring eight objectives for the Panthers.
“Lucy is a flexible participant which was essential. She performed ahead, attacking mid, outdoors mid, and holding mid and did properly no matter place. Very lively runner off the ball, she brought on issues with opposing defenses with mixture of motion and passing capacity,” West Ottawa soccer coach Brent Wyckoff stated.
Borski stated taking part in every sport additionally helped with the opposite.
“Basketball and soccer are comparable so far as motion. Taking part in each has gotten me higher at each. You be taught the lanes by taking part in each,” she stated. “It looks like you’re a step forward. Somebody tries to protect you after which you’re previous them. You’re only a step quicker.”
Borski was wanting ahead to having a fair higher spring season as a senior, however the coronavirus pandemic canceled spring sports activities.
“After we came upon that college was canceled, we received collectively as a workforce and talked about every little thing. At that time, we didn’t know what that meant for soccer. I believe we have been all holding out hope that we might have a season and being open air would save that for us. However as quarantine began, we knew that was much less probably,” she stated. “It was fairly heartbreaking. My sister and I had been taking part in within the again yr to maintain our abilities up, but it surely has been fairly laborious not having that final season.”
Borski will attend the College of Michigan within the fall and plans to review biology and play membership soccer.
“I’m going to play membership. Not having a season this yr type of spurred that on,” she stated.
Another probability to compete.
“I believe my willingness to place all of it on the market to compete and wish to win,” she stated. “That began in basketball then moved on to soccer. It actually pushed me to maintain going and check out more durable than I ever have.”
Borski has used her imaginative and prescient to go away an unparalleled legacy, particularly for undersized athletes. Assume laborious and play laborious combines into all the time being a step forward.
— Comply with Sports activities Editor Dan D’Addona on Twitter @DanDAddona and Fb @Holland Sentinel Sports activities.
