Q. How is this year’s team different than last year’s?

A. “This year’s team has more of a family feel to it compared to previous years. And especially with the most detrimental part of last year, our team was separated from the starters and the second string. Unfortunately, they didn’t have a good relationship, so whenever a first individual would go down, the second string would come up and it didn’t necessarily mix well. We didn’t get a good mesh and we didn’t have good coordination with one another because there was too much of a competitive feel and too much animosity and tension between who’s better and who deserves to be there and why they deserve to be there. So the comparison between this year and last year is that this year we actually have a family connection to where we’re pushing each other from the first string to the second string, to even now newcomers who are barely coming to the team. We are giving them the initiation of a true family member and we’re allowing them to really participate in what we’re trying to accomplish. What we’re trying to accomplish is not winning league, it’s building a community and it’s building a family and a tradition of being successful at heart.”

Q. What does this senior season mean to you?

A. “This senior year means everything to me. Unfortunately, last year I got hurt. I had a type two separation in my shoulder during the fourth game and I was really down and out. My father was in the hospital for a little while and my mother picked up a second job, so I came home alone. It was really difficult for me and I really wasn’t sure if I was going to play. But with this team, and having them back me up and support me the way they have, and having me come out and push me every single day to try my best, it means absolutely everything to me. Because it means now that I have that family that I’ve always wanted to have and, sadly, I wasn’t having the opportunity to have last year. So this year means the beginning of the rest of my life with my best friends and my teammates.”

Q. If you had to compare yourself to a superhero, who would it be and why?

A. “All the seniors on our team, as a tradition that we’re trying to start, we all picked alter egos. My alter ego is Captain America, simply because I’m always kind of the goody two shoes. I’m always the guy who’s kind of afraid to get in trouble. Very terrified of the coaches, I never want to be late. And I compare myself to him simply because that nickname was beholden to me by a senior my freshman year, and I try living up to that expectation of always being on time, always trying my best, and living up to the role of trying to be a leader amongst my friends and everyone around me.”

Q. Delhi has never won a league title. What’s it going to take to change that this year?

A. “Honestly, I think what we need to undergo and what we need to do to win a league title is already underway. The determination that we’ve put in year round from the get go in the weight room and going out and practicing after all the track practices and basketball practices, you know going out and putting in the extra hour and putting in the extra determination to pull your guys out, even when you’re sick and you’re tired, it’s already been underway. And I think, as of right now, we are already on the road to success and on the road to possibly winning a league title this year.”

Q. What are you most looking forward to once league play starts?

A. “I’m just looking forward to the competition. There are a lot of teams in my league that we have never had the opportunity to beat, simply because of better coaching or they’re more stacked with students and they have a larger variety of students to pick from. So I’m most definitely excited about facing LeGrand, Mariposa, and Waterford. These are the teams that we traditionally, as a school, have a very fierce rivalry with. We have a good relationship with one another, but we most definitely are looking at the prize, and the prize is to have a successful game and try our best. I mean that’s my anticipation, just have good competition.”