Over the last couple of years, student-athletes at Grayslake Central have had a lot of time to work on themselves mentally and physically, after coming back to school, our sports programs have seen a spike in success. Football, boys soccer, girls tennis, golf, cross country, and girls volleyball have all seen success in their own ways. Sports captains, specifically in fall sports, have been a big part of this new shift towards success.

Boys soccer senior captain Ben Berry said, “I have been leading by example for years. I have been working hard in and out of practice and have worked up to why I [am] a good leader for the team.”

Berry has been inspired by past captains to keep the same winning mentality up and be a resource for anyone on the team that needs help or guidance. A good memory Berry talked about was about how every win they’ve had this season thus far has been a different but amazing feeling every time and is proud of the hard work and progress the team has made.

“I feel good about the season so far, and even though we started a little rough we got back up on our feet and are now contenders for co-conference champs,” said Berry.

Girls tennis senior captain Grace Caldwell stated, “I have worked hard my whole high school career to get to the point where I am now, and I am happy the team put the trust in me to be one of their captains.”

Caldwell also mentions how the previous captains had a big impact on her, and inspired her to be a leader herself. “I always admired how they were able to create such a positive and productive environment for the team, and I felt I definitely could carry that over to the team,” said Caldwell.

The girls’ tennis team went undefeated in the conference and won the conference tournament. Caldwell reflects that her most memorable moment of the season was the team winning the conference tournament and finally seeing that her hard work paid off.

said, I felt ready for the upcoming season and was even more ready to lead the younger girls and be a role model to look up to when they needed someone. Being a captain, I see that I need to lead by example. I got this mentality from the previous captains we had when we were combined with [Grayslake] North.”

“I am so excited to see how the future of the program [will look]!” Although Schultz and the team did not end with their individual lows, top golfer Alex McGowen went to sectionals for the team.

Girls cross country senior captain Bryn Sato, expressed her joy of being a captain by saying, “I absolutely love being a leader. It feels good knowing that the underclassmen look up to me as a leader. I always try to bring a positive attitude to the team, and work hard on a daily basis to encourage my teammates to do the same.”

Sato spent her freshman and sophomore years waiting to finally get the chance to step up and become a captain. She wanted to continue the impact her captains had on her from her freshman and sophomore years. They inspired her to branch out and lead by example. The cross country team has been on fire this season and is ranked the number one team in Illinois; the girls couldn’t be happier.

Girls volleyball senior captain Piper Gallaher said, “I am extremely blessed to be a captain this year… It means a lot that my teammates want me to be a leader and help us have a great season.”

Gallaher is known for never losing hope and picking up her teammates when they are down. She joined the varsity team her sophomore year and has experienced a lot of good leadership from upperclassmen before her.

“Everyone is a captain and a leader in their own way and I created my own way of leading this team,” continues Gallaher, “We had a couple rough moments but it is impressive how far we have come. We have been in close games against teams ranked in the state and we just keep improving.”