“You’re out for the rest of the season!” This is the single most heart-wrenching sentence an athlete can hear. Athletes knows that every time they step on the field, ice, or court it could be their last time.

On campus at Williston, many athletes were sidelined for the remainder of their winter seasons along with portions of their spring seasons.

Nick Schofield, a junior on the Boys Varsity Hockey team, had a lot to say about the effects of his injury.

“When I found out I was out for the rest of the season I was very upset. It’s probably the hardest thing to hear to be honest” he said.

As the leading point scorer for the team, the loss of Nick Schofield was huge. Boys Varsity Hockey coach Derek Cunha says, “Any time you lose a top player for a significant amount of time, it can be difficult for a team.”

Nick underwent Labrum surgery, and Coach Cunha said “What Nick has done the past two seasons with a bad shoulder has been impressive. If you think about it he probably could have had surgery at the beginning of the 2014-15 season. He played two full seasons on it and still led us in points per game. I think a healthy Nick plays with even greater confidence on the ice and that should permeate through our team. He will also be our most experienced player and that should be helpful to us as we make a push towards the playoffs and a championship”.

Many other injuries occurred to members of Williston Athletics this winter. One of these happened to Rob Champigny 18’, a star Cross Country runner and a member of the Boys Varsity Lacrosse team. The loss of Rob for this spring season will be “detrimental” said his teammates.

Similar to Schofield, Champigny described hearing the news he would be out, “When I found out how long I would be out due to my injury I was instantly crushed. I knew that we were bound to have a great season and I was upset that I would not be a part of it. Looking at the positives now I look forward to my Junior and Senior year along with helping out this year as much as possible.”

Being told you are done for the rest of the season may be heartbreaking, and both Schofield and Champigny had very similar views on their roles on the team following their injuries.

Schofield states ,“When I was injured I did not feel left out of the team at all. Every day I would be down at practice and interacting with all of the guys on the team. It just was hard to watch games and practices because I wanted to be out there so badly.”

The constant feeling of seeing your teammates compete day in and day out while you cannot be out there is disheartening, Champigny had a lot of positive feelings about this season and hopeful thoughts about his recovery .

He said, “This injury has changed me, but it will not prevent me from coming back better and stronger as I have very high expectations for myself in the summer.”

Not being in the lineup for your team is definitively tough. Watching the guys get ready to go out for another battle on the field, it is difficult to sit there and not wish you are out there. However, the support of Champigny’s teammates helped.

“There are definitively times where I feel like less to the team. I am the type of kid that cannot stand sitting on the sideline, but thankfully my upperclassmen, captains, and coaches help make sure I still feel like part of the team. I am especially thankful for my captains Nick Garafano and Jake Ross who constantly check to see how I am recovering mentally and physically” said Champigny.

As Williston heads into the spring season the hope in all of the coaches and players minds is to stay as healthy as possible.