by Samuel Abbas | sports editor
Following some important rival games against Reagan and Churchill respectively, the Jags push onward on the hardwood and continue their strong season to make a push for a higher playoff seed.
“The game against Reagan is really important because we lost to them the first time we played them in district even though it was close. They are our biggest rival so if we beat them, then we will probably end up taking their spot in district and having a better record for the playoffs,” sophomore Brooke Adkisson said.
Highway 281 is the boundary line for Johnson and Reagan. After middle school half your friends go to Reagan while the other half attends Johnson, so it’s not a surprise that since Johnson opened in 2008, Reagan has consistently been the biggest rival in all sports, especially in football.
“Well it’s really tough, I mean they are, like you said, right across the highway. Of course we always want to beat them so it was really tough [to lose] and we are going to take what we can from it, and hopefully it will benefit us in the long run,” senior quarterback Josh Thiessen said.
Recently, on the hardwood, the Jags have also faced a consistent rival over the years, otherwise known as the Churchill Chargers. However, volleyball did claim victory in three out of four matches, and are quickly climbing in the district rankings.
“The win against Churchill was really important because they were ranked number one in district at that time. It was a big win because it could have gone either way between us, so winning that game really gave us good momentum and hopefully we can carry it towards Reagan this friday,” Adkisson said.
Even though losing in general can be tough, losing to a rival let alone your biggest rival is just heartbreaking. The Jags faced Reagan at Comalander Stadium in what some called the “Stone Oak Bowl”, which had an attendance of over 8,000 people. The Jags fought hard but eventually lost 35-26 in one of the biggest games of their season.
“I think this loss will definitely motivate us throughout the season. We don’t want to have this feeling again. Losing is awful and we are going to have to treat every game like it’s Reagan so we can keep winning and eventually take it into the playoffs,” Thiessen said.
Despite the end result of this game, the loss may have actually encouraged the players to continue to give their best at every game.
“I think this will motivate us and light a fire under us so that we don’t have to experience this feeling again. And I think we will win the rest of our games because we don’t want to experience a loss like this again,” Thiessen said.
