Soccer’s Saturday Switch-Ups

By: Chloe Shapkauski, BDTV228 Sports Multimedia Intern

When walking into their Saturday 7 am practice, the Tinley Park High Schools’ Girls Varsity Soccer Team did not anticipate two hours full of surprises. From minute-to-win-it games to burpees in exchange for marshmallows, the girls used their driven nature to conquer unique challenges.

“We incorporate fun opportunities and team-building exercises with creative conditioning for teammates to interact with each other," said Coach Mike Boniface. "It's opportunities like Saturday Switch-Ups that make our team more united. This unity not only benefits us as a program on the field but in the halls and community as well.”

Tinley Park High School Girls Varsity Soccer Coaches Mike Boniface, Pietro Sansone, and Kelsey Neylon, combined the players into three groups of five based on grade level. Forming the fourth group was the coaches paired with Boniface’s daughter Quinn.

For the first task, there was a box of tissues waiting to be yanked out of their container. In order to win the greatest number of points (4), speed equaled success. Angela Martinez stole the show with her superb tissue-grabbing skills, achieving the win for the mixed bunch of sophomores and juniors.

Contestants were creative throughout the next challenge since everyone was given a pencil as well as a plastic cup. Without directly placing the writing utensil in the cup, the girls strategically ricocheted the object off a table into the cup three times before earning participation points.

Thanks to Emma Goyola, the second round went to the seniors with her pencil-bouncing skills.

Throughout the third trial, favorite treats, Oreos, were incorporated. Placed on individuals’ foreheads, the chocolate cookie had to journey into one’s mouth twice using only facial muscles.

An impressive performance was met with point gain when Gina Paparelli displayed senior speed.

In the last solo segment, players were handed a respectable stack of cups, all of them red except for one that was blue. Their mission, when they chose to accept it, was to continue rotating the cups on the stack until the blue rested at the top. Bringing the coaches their first set of four points was Pietro Sansone.

The final portion of the activities required effort from everyone with the target goal of constructing the tallest tower. Materials of the structure included marshmallows along with uncooked pasta noodles. In exchange for one piece of supplies, teammates would bust out five burpees. No wonder Coach Boniface warned the girls about wearing gym shoes to practice.

Though it was a close call with buckets of sweat and multiple reps of cardio, the seniors reached a height above all other competitors, taking the final prize to be determined from the coaches. Following the top dogs on the podium was the integrated team of sophomores and juniors. Team freshmen received third.

As recovery, Coach Neylon led Tinley Park’s Girls Varsity Soccer in stretches, performing poised yoga.

Overall, the girls enjoyed a bonding experience that induced communication, creativity, and, most importantly, cardio.

Coach Boniface commented on the history behind the untraditional practice and said, “Saturday Switch-Ups have been a regular occurrence during the season for the Varsity Girls Squad for the past 8 years. These 'Switch-Ups' have been very successful team gatherings outside of normal practice"

"Over the years, we have seen the girls go from dreading the 6th day of practice to being eager for the surprise that awaits them! I believe the Saturday Switch-Ups will continue to elevate our connectedness on the field during practice and games. We look forward to another great season, tacking on our tenth Regional Championship and hopefully making a run for a Sectional Championship!”