When she finds her sport…

For the longest time, we were a purely soccer family. I thought soccer had to be it because that’s what I played growing up. In my youth, I played soccer year round, and really didn’t think about trying anything else. Of course I’m not saying don’t play soccer - it’s an awesome sport! It teaches agility, teamwork, gets players outside, and is a great option of that’s what your child loves to do (just like any other sport).

But there came a point where my daughter didn’t really seem to want to go out on the pitch - she was slow to get out there, she didn’t exude joy when she played, and it seemed more like a chore than fun to get her to practice. This made me sad. Soccer was our sport (well at least it was my sport…)! What would happen if she stopped playing? Would she be left out in the future?

Enter…

…another option.

She had played basketball for one season the previous winter and had seemed to enjoy it, so I figured why not see if there were opportunities to play in the summer and fall while she didn’t have a team sport (since she wasn’t interested in playing soccer). So I googled basketball programs in the area and came upon the CT Aces.

That’s when everything changed for us.

Coach Rob offered summer clinics that our daughter could attend once or twice a week, and these really started the ball rolling for her. Not only was she running like she never had before, but she was being taught basketball skills that not many rising 4th graders have the opportunity to learn. And it was affordable too!

So she trained in the summer and joined the team in the fall, still a little bit unsure of herself, and still wondering if this was for her. The fall was a little bit wonky because there are not many AAU brackets for 3rd and 4th graders, so she had to play with girls who were much older than her. This did seem daunting, but they took their lumps and I was in awe of the positive attitudes each of the players had, even after they went up against teams stacked with girls much older than than them.

I think that’s a testament to the coaching at the CT Aces - her coaches never made her feel bad about not performing or taking a loss, instead they used positive words and tones, and addressed what needed to be addressed at practices and skills clinics throughout the fall. They were always there to lend an ear when the players had concerns or needed guidance.

The biggest payoff for my daughter after the fall season was how it helped her grow as a basketball player and leader on the court when she played for her local teams this winter. She went from being nervous on the court and unable to keep up with players around her, to being motivated and outscoring many of the players she went up against. It was this change in our 4th grader’s confidence that I think had a lot to do with her experience with the CT Aces.

Coach Rob and his fellow coaches took a 4th grader who was unsure of her skills, nervous to go for it on the court, and unable to keep up, and helped turn her into the opposite of all of those things. And she chose to do all of it. Now, she never complains about going to practice, she runs the whole time and gets right back out there, and is a leader on the basketball court every time she steps out there.

To us, it’s apparent that basketball (right now) is her sport. She lights up when she gets out there, and I think that’s what I was looking for (for her) all along. The moral of this story is that if your child can find his or her sport, I think the sky is the limit. Whether it’s through basketball, soccer, volleyball, golf, bowling, hockey - the possibilities are endless. And try them all!

But that spark - that’s personal. Our player found it with the with basketball and the CT Aces, and I hope you and your child can find it too.

Spring 2025 is our first spring AAU seaason with the CT Aces, and we are looking forward to watching our player gain more skills and confidence on the court. Not only that, but we are looking forward to the family that this program provides us with - outside of our local town, and with families that we would not have met if not for the program.

Of course, her sport might change over the years, but we’re here for it. But for now, we are very thankful to have found a home with the CT Aces.