![Game, set, and match. Corbin Atchley, sophomore, high fives Sanam Sidhu, freshman, after a rally with other club members. “I just joined [the club],” Sidhu said. “[I heard about it] on Instagram, they always post about it, I’ve been wanting to come. My parents used to play [net sports] too and they taught us, and then I learned from my brother.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/MG_7715-2-1200x800.jpg)
![At the bottom of the third inning, the Lions are still scoreless. Rowe stands at home plate, preparing to bat, while Vandenbrink stands off to the side as the next batter up. Despite having the bases loaded, the team was unable to score any runs. “It’s just the beginning of the season. We’re just going to be playing out best by June, [and] that’s where champions are,” Rowe said.](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/03/IMG_3077-1200x900.jpg)
![The teams prepare to start another play with just a few minutes left in the first half. The Lions were in the lead at halftime with a score of 27-0. At half time, the team went back to the locker rooms. “[We ate] orange slices,” Malos said. “[Then] our team came out and got the win.”](https://wlhsnow.com/wp-content/uploads/2023/10/IMG_2385-1200x800.jpg)
Watching the news it looked horrible—massive floods, thousands without power and damage beyond the hopes of repair. While Hurricane Sandy hit land, I sat with the Mock Trial Team watching the news, awaiting what was to come next.
We were supposed to go home on Monday, Oct. 29, but Sandy had other plans for us. She left us stranded in New York for five more days than expected. Although this put a damper on our plans, the worst was when the hurricane actually hit land.
We were flipping through the channels, watching the various news stations, and Sandy was everywhere. Newscasters raved about the immense damage that she left in her path, and we worried about what would happen. We thought we were going to lose power, and I honestly worried about what shape we would be when the hurricane passed.
“It was concerning to see all of the high winds and damage to surrounding buildings,” Adam Lee, senior, said.
Matt Kellogg and Jessica Smith, our coaches, were worried, too. They had us taking preventative measures like buying food and water in case we couldn’t go out. Along with this, we took other action.
“One of our chaperones made us fill the bathtubs with water in case the piping broke,” Allisen Haggard, senior, said.
Although we took these precautions, among others, they proved unnecessary. Somehow we were blessed with good luck, and Sandy slid on by us with nearly no damage to our area in Brooklyn. Despite our luck, many others faced a much worse fate. Floods ruined houses and damaged stores, there were mass power outages and some even died in the hurricane. Overall, Hurricane Sandy affected at least 24 states and even went into Canada.
“I feel really lucky that we were in a location as safe as ours,” Lee said.
The entire team feels fortunate, and we also would like to spread awareness and take a minute to think about those that were affected detrimentally in the midst of Hurricane Sandy.
“So many other people suffered much more than we did in the hurricane, and everyone needs to try to help them out in this difficult time,” Lacey Gunther, senior, said.
There are many ways to help out and mitigate the damage caused by Hurricane Sandy. The Red Cross, at www.redcross.org/hurricanesandy, and Ten Doves Charity, at www.disasterfunding.org, are both accepting donations to support Hurricane Sandy relief, and any amount of money will help.
