Emilia Webb – Soccer

Summer finally arrives and students relax and settle into their long break, except for one freshman, varsity soccer player: Emilia Webb, who will be waking up early every morning to workout with five-mile runs and sprints.

Webb, along with her two sisters, was introduced to soccer by her parents when she was in kindergarden, but despite all three sisters being introduced to the sport, she was the only one who stuck with it.

Webb started out playing for MSI (Montgomery Soccer Inc.) for her first couple years, and after deciding she wanted to get more serious, she started playing for the travel team Rush. She played on Rush for only one year before changing to her current team, Rush Reign, which is a more experienced team. For Rush Reign, she plays forward, but for RHS, Webb was a starting center midfielder.

“Emilia was able to fill a position that needed to be filled this year and she stepped up to the plate better than anyone else would have,” senior varsity soccer captain Charlotte Davis said. “Emilia is a very aggressive and strong player with a great vision of the field, which is very important when you play her position.”

Webb plans on spending a lot of her summer preparing for the upcoming soccer season at RHS, she said. She is playing summer league for RHS, along with individual workouts which consist of five mile runs and sprints. In addition to running, she uses resistance bands to increase leg strength and does Russian twists and leg lifts to increase ab strength.

A good amount of the varsity soccer team was comprised of freshmen this past season and having such a young team will help in the future, Webb said.

“I think having a lot of freshman that have potential is really good for the future because we will have a strong team with a lot of the same girls,” Webb said. “So we’ll get more time developing and getting used to playing with each other.”

Part of what made Webb stand out as a freshman was her talent for communication on the field, making her a good leader.

“Emilia was really good at communicating on the field,” freshman defender Callie Borda said. “Emilia has a loud voice and she makes sure that she is heard.”

Webb hopes for more wins this upcoming soccer season and to create higher expectations for the team, she said.

“I plan on getting more wins by pushing the team, conditioning more and working hard in practice, which will hopefully create higher standards for the team,” Webb said.

For the upcoming season, the girls soccer team will have a new coach, Neil Gottlieb who said he hopes to establish an atmosphere of hard work, respect and dedication.

Sam Brami – Baseball

For most, transitioning into high school isn’t easy. For freshman Sam Brami, however, his adjustment wasn’t difficult, he said. In the winter, Brami played JV basketball, and in the spring he played JV baseball, eventually moving up to varsity due to his determination and extreme efforts. He formed an unbreakable bond with the varsity baseball team, helping him find his place at RHS.

Brami proved he was capable of being on the varsity baseball team through his determination and his flexibility, varsity baseball coach Farron Riggs said.

“Sam filled a couple of needs for the [baseball] team. He is a very versatile player. He can play several positions, catch and play the outfield. Sam stood out by working hard, and playing the game to the best of his ability,” Riggs said.

In addition to baseball, Brami played on the golf team and the JV basketball team, getting him heavily involved in multiple school activities.

Brami’s passion for sports started at a young age.  He started playing baseball in kindergarten and basketball in second grade. He joined his club baseball team, the Olney Pirates, in second grade, and joined his club basketball team, the Olney Bandits, in third grade. He no longer plays for any club teams because he wants to focus on high school sports.

“I think high school [teams] are more important for me to be involved in, rather than club teams because of the bonds I make. I’ll probably know some of the people I play with for the rest of my life. High school sports are part of the high school experience, which is why I chose to be more involved in them,” Brami said.

Brami aims to improve his skills and techniques over the summer by playing on the baseball and basketball summer league teams, he said. Brami is always looking to improve and practice. He goes to the batting cages and is always trying to play catch with his friends and family. He also participates in occasional wiffle ball tournaments with his RHS team.

“I think Sam will improve a lot in the next three years and that he may be one of the best in the coming years. He already has a lot of talent and knows the game very well,” junior baseball teammate George Athanasakis said.

Even though Brami has played a sport every season this year, he has still managed to maintain all A’s and one B each quarter. Academics are his number one priority, Brami said.

“I balance sports and academics by prioritizing homework when I get home over anything else. I also see my teachers for lunch if I miss any classes due to sports. I just have to know how to manage my time,” Brami said.  

The baseball team formed an extremely strong bond over the season. They would hang out almost every weekend after practices or games.

“A strong bond is important because it brings everyone together, and it’s always better to play the game with people that have a strong bond with each other. Sam fit in just fine,” Athanasakis said.

Next year, Brami is expected to play a lot more, and to be one of the star players on the team, if he keeps up his hard work, Riggs said.

“I would assume Sam will be in the mix for a starting spot on the varsity team, along with many others,” Riggs said. “As long as he keeps working hard and playing, he will be right in the mix next year.”