![NEW CHALLENGE, NEW TEAM MEMBERS: Every season, VEX creates a new game that robotics team members are faced with and have to build a robot to compete in. This year’s game forces students to create a robot that is able to stack rings onto mobile goals in order to score points. The change in games each season is something that robotics teacher Audrea Moyers appreciates.
“One of the things that I like about VEX is that they have a new problem to solve every year,” she said. ¨Even though the equipment’s the same, they have to analyze the game, and they have to come up with solutions that are unique that year. They are using their knowledge from prior years, but they have to kind of redesign a problem.”
As returning teams were faced a new game, some new teams and members had to adapt to a uncommon playing field and game.
“Three of our four teams were competing for the first time this year, and they had very different experiences match to match, so I think they learned a lot,¨ she said. ¨It’s hard just watching a video online to know how it’s actually going to be in person, so they all learned a lot about what gameplay is like, how to work with an alliance partner [and] how to adapt during the day to changes.”](https://bestofsno.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/12/IMG_9283-1-1200x800.jpg)
For any athlete, the position they play on the field, court, or pool is an important aspect of their performance. But for sophomore Vivienne French, playing right wing on the junior varsity soccer team is more than just a strategic decision — it’s essential in helping her navigate hearing loss during games.
French, who was diagnosed with hearing loss at age 3, started playing soccer a few years later. Rather than letting her condition discourage her, she has adapted and excelled as a player.
“It’s really hard for [teammates and coaches] to talk to me and tell me what to do if I can’t hear them. But usually what I do is I play a right wing so that my left ear, which is my good ear, is facing the field, so I can hear a lot,” French said.
French is not the only athlete managing a health condition while playing on the field. Junior Mika Haggarty, also a soccer player, has had to balance the demands of the sport with Type 1 diabetes.
“[Diabetes] affects my everyday life because it’s something that I constantly have to deal with and think about and manage. Right when I wake up in the morning, while I’m sleeping at night, I always have to make sure that my levels are good and that I’m taking care of myself,” Haggarty said.
If Haggarty’s blood sugar levels drop, which can happen due to anxiety or exercise, she experiences symptoms like shakiness or lightheadedness. As a high school student, Haggarty has learned to manage her condition on the field with a proper diet and quick access to foods that will increase her blood sugar, but this plan has not always been an option.
“When I was first diagnosed, I quit soccer,” Haggarty said. “I was only six years old, so it’s not like it was like a big quit but I stopped playing just because I didn’t really know how to manage, and it’s definitely something that you need a lot of help managing.”
As she became more familiar with her condition, Haggarty learned how to regulate her blood sugar during games and was able to return to soccer.
“[Diabetes has] taught me a lot about discipline and always taking care of yourself. Because, if you don’t take care of yourself it affects you immediately, and you feel that effect. It’s important to constantly be managing it because if you don’t the long-term effects are detrimental,” Haggarty said.
For senior Joss Tramel, another Burlingame athlete, sports once seemed out of reach. A stroke in childhood left her with paralysis on the left side of her body, forcing her to step away from the game she loved. She wasn’t sure if she would ever compete again — then she found rowing.
“I grew up playing soccer, and then after my accident, I couldn’t run,” Tramel said. “I didn’t really do anything for a couple years. I kind of just focused on [physical therapy] and getting back to my normal life and all of that. And then rowing was the first sport that I found after my accident.”
Due to her paralysis, Tramel uses a specialized brace with a hook on the bottom that secures the oar, allowing her to row by pulling her shoulder rather than her arm. Although Tramel is the only disabled rower on her team she has never felt alone.
“When I first started, I kind of assumed that nobody wanted to help and that I was doing this on my own,” she said. “I was kind of a little more secluded and assumed that I’d figure things out on my own. [But] my teammates are great. I have my own special oar that I bring down. My teammates know to grab that if I’m in their boat, and they know to help me with my brace before I get in the boat, because I can’t do that by myself. I think just getting used to asking for help and getting to know the people on my team better has definitely helped me feel a lot more a part of that team,” Tramel said.
When Tramel’s team qualifies for national rowing events, she gets the opportunity to compete with other rowers who have disabilities — an experience that helps her feel connected to other athletes who share similar experiences.
“It’s kind of surreal, which sounds kind of stupid, but it’s so fun to not be the only one on my team for the first time. Even if it’s just one other person, like, a sense of community that I don’t really get any other time. And even if I’ve never met them before, because that’s often the case … it’s nice to have that sense of community. Know that I’m not the only disabled one alone,” Tramel said.
This story was originally published on The Burlingame B on February 26, 2025.
