Marykate Fallon
Staff Writer

Carly Pala, senior and captain of Girls’ Soccer, has verbally committed to Salve Regina University to play Division III soccer.

Pala has been playing soccer since she learned to walk and is eager to start playing in college.

She started playing soccer because she watched her older sister play.

Pala said, “My older sister has played her whole life, so when I saw her playing, I wanted to be on the same team as her.” Pala fell in love with the game as soon as she started playing.

Coming into her senior year, Pala was named co-captain with her two classmates Alexia Malangone and Kali Borden. Pala has enjoyed being captain and said the best thing about it is “being a leader with Alexia and Kali and also inspiring underclassmen to do their best.”

“Carly is a great leader and takes full pride in being captain,” said Malangone. “She is a great teammate to have.”

Pala has also gone all-division her sophomore and junior years and hopes to achieve the same goal during her senior year.

When Pala isn’t kickin’ it on the soccer field she enjoys spending time with her friends and jamming out to her favorite song “Shake It Off” by Taylor Swift. Pala said, “I love that song, it puts me in such a good mood and I always turn it up whenever it’s on the radio.”

Pala also has an abundance of academic achievements. She has achieved honors all four years and strives to do her best in every class. Pala is always working hard to get good grades and is always going above and beyond with her work.

Pala appears very dedicated to the game, and friends find it hard to imagine her doing anything different.

Because Pala enjoys soccer so much, she encourages younger students to take part in sports in high school.

“It’s a great way to make new friends and also to get involved in the school,” Pala said. “When I was a freshman my sister was on the team so it was good being able to play with her again and it also helped me build friendships with some of my best friends today.”

As the season ends, cross country runner, Kevin Aiken is so sad to leave the team but very happy looking back on his season seeing how much he achieved! Besides for running, Kevin likes to swim to stay in shape, hike, and hangout with his friends. Kevin was not only a great aspect to the team when it came to running; he was also very spirited and very talented at getting the team pumped up for races!

Kevin’s best time was 17:52 minutes at SCC’s for the Hammonasset Division race in Madison on October 7 against Hand and Guilford. His best placing was 3 out of 70 contestants at Eisenhower Park. Kevin said “The cross country team was extremely close and a great group of kids!” Kevin feels that when it comes to running, he could’ve improved by working on his endurance, form and mentality throughout a race. Kevin’s favorite aspect of running is the isolation during a race and the “runners high” felt after finishing.

As the season ends, Kevin leaves a message for his team saying, “I hope you have a great season next year! Keep working hard and running fast. I will miss all of you and I hope to come back and see you guys race next year! I wish you guys the best of luck finishing out your high school career!!” Kevin Aiken made a great runner and amazing team player, the entire team will miss him!