Athlete Spotlight

By Nashiya Morant '25
























Katharine Vishio, also known as Katie is not only a student at Little Flower but an athlete. She has been playing softball for six years and this is her first year doing tennis. When she's not on a tennis court or on the field she is at a racquet club or a batting cage, keeping her in shape all year round. Katharine is well involved in the athletic department. She is a participant in the LF Athletic Association, where she helps plan pep rallies and write spotlights for her fellow athletes. 



 Katharine is also the president of Athletes Helping Athletes. She is the founder of the AHA club at Little Flower and her official job title is the offical coordinator of activities and chair of officers and organization meetings. She gets the events together, plans all the meetings, and makes sure all the officers are on the same page. Katharine is also the liaison between our club and the official AHA Organization. She first discovered AHA when she was a freshman in high school. She had a cousin who happened to have an AHA club already at his school. He mentioned it to her and she was intrigued, she spent so much of her time researching and coming up with ideas. This was brought up to the former athletic director but sadly he couldn't help. She tried again her sophomore year and still no luck. This year Little Flower got a new athletic director, Mr. Tim, she tried her luck again and she finally got the go-ahead. She quickly realized how big of a job this was and she began to recruit officers and assign positions. For those who are still unamiliar with AHA, to quote Katharine, "AHA connects local special needs athletes with mainstream student-athletes in a spirit of friendship for their mutual benefit and inspiration." Katharine's main message as president of AHA is to offer a place where ahtletes can feel like themselves. She wants the special needs athletes to know that they belong in athletics just as much as anyone else. 

We all know that being a student is stressful enough and being a student-athlete is pushing your limits, we can all agree on that part. For Katharine, she struggled entering high school as a student-athlete but she was eventually able to learn from her mistakes. Over time she was able to manage both, even to this day sometimes she struggles but it's all about preseverance. Being an athlete can get expensive and Katharine is heavily grateful for every opportunity that her parents have given her over the years. She is also thankful for her current and former coaches for helping her build a better relationship with her sports.

By Gabrielle Dever '23























 
After a year putting pom poms away the Little Flower Cheer team is back and better than ever, especially Qanyia Benjamin, a Junior Cheerleader at Little Flower. She brings the sass, determination, leadership, and heart to the Little Flower Cheer Team. Qanyia started cheering at the age of 5 and always dreamed of continuing cheering through her high school years. "I was happy to hear that cheer came back because I've always had a passion for dancing and stunting and I used to do it when I was younger, but I stopped and that love for it never went away" explains Qanyia. Her love grew stronger as she and the team welcomed new coaches who brought the spunk that our cheer team needed. Little Flower cheer was not only cheering for our lady Sentinels but also traveling with the Roman Catholic Cahillites Sports Teams. "A lot of people join cheer or want to become cheerleaders because it sounds cool, or they want the uniform and the Pom Poms, and some people don't consider cheerleading a sport but what we do is just as serious as swinging a bat or making a touchdown or scoring a 3 pointer the amount of trust, effort, strength, time, and discipline that goes into it is unfathomable. It is a sport, and it is a sisterhood, and it is fun. We effortlessly make the impossible look possible and I'm proud to be called a Little Flower cheerleader."



 Qanyia and her team highlight the sisterhood of Little Flower by bringing more than just a team...they are a family. They show spirit, they bring the noise but most importantly they represent the maroon and white! Not only does Qanyia have a love for cheer but also a passion for singing. When getting ready to cheer on the Roman Catholic Cahillites, she belts out the national anthem as all stand for the flag. She is a natural performer and loves being in front of a crowd, it's something that comes easy to her. Qaniya shines as a cheerleader, singer, and a strong leader. She is an officer for the Ambassadors and demonstrates great leadership qualities in and out of the classroom. Being a well-rounded student comes with many challenges, but Qanyia makes it look effortless. 
 

By Katharine Vishio '23

Participating in activities and sports during your time in high school is essential to most people. Being involved can help you create friendships with stuents who have the same interests as you, allow you to have tiem throughout the day to do something you enjoy, and simply have fun. For sophomore Mia Wolos, joining the bolwing team did just that.


Mia Wolos had been bowling for many years before attending Little Flower, but she decided to try out for the team this year. She said she joined because she wanted to beocome more involved at LF. Mia said that in joining the team, she created many friendships and bonds with girls she would have never met without the help of joining a sports team. She admits that trying out for something new is scary but that others should not be afraid of it because it can lead to having lifelong friendships and rewarding experiences. 

Although getting involved is excellent, it comes with some challenges. Mia admits that balancing her academic life with her extracurriculars is pretty tricky. She says that maintaining a good balance with everything you are doing is key to success in all activities. Being involved comes with making tough decisions on your priorities, which Mia is no stranger to. Mia has had to make tough decisions about where to spend her time, whether that be attending a bowling practice rather than going to a club meeting or vice versa. Even though it is difficult at times, Mia believes that she has made the right decision most of the time when splitting her time.



 Since this was Mia's first year playing on a bowling team, she set some reasonable goals for herself. Mia wanted to get a new personal record, but she was more focused on taking things less seriously and having fun. She is happy to say that she did have a great deal of fun this year with the new friends she made thorugh the team. The team was not all fun and games, though. They worked hard every practice, and Mia said it was all worth it when they had their first win.

Mia Wolos is a dedicated student as well as an athlete. Although her freshman year was not typical due to COVID, she found a way to make it up during her sophomore year by joining many extracurricular activities. She admits it is difficult balancing everything, but she continues to handle all the challenges and pressures of school and sports. 

By Bridget Comas '25

Gabrielle (Gabi) Dever, a junior here at Little Flower has made a name for herself through basketball, is ready to compete and try to bring Little Flower into the playoffs. Besides being the starting point guard for LF, Gabi is also involved in so many things such as CSC, SGA, ambassadors, labrosse and is the vice president of the Athletes helping Athletes club! Gabi averages about 5-8 points a game and is a tough defender to go up against. She has a great basketball IT and always plays with heart. Gabi has been playing basketball ever since she was 9 for St. George's CYO but did not start taking it seriously until 6th grade. While competing in the PCl is tough, Gabi has one of her biggest supporters on the sideline with her, her dad. Assistant Coach John Dever played at North Catholic and always pushes Gabi to do her best. He always encourages her to play her hardest every game and reminds to always compete with everything you got!



Being her third year on the team, Gabi is no stranger to aggression, physicality, and toughness. During a scrimmage game in December, Gabi and a player on the MAST Charter School team were going head-to-head for a loose ball when Gabi ran her head into th e side of the bleachers and banged her head and eye. Being out for a week due to stitches and concussion protocol, Gabi could not wait to get back to playing and was ready to fight for a win! Besides being a great basketball player, Gabi is also a great teammate. She is always cheering everyone on whether it's a practice game, or even drills. She always sees the positive in each player and is a great role model to everyone on the team!




 




During Dever's sophomore season, the Coronavirus was a big issue, and many precautions were taken during the time. Sometimes games would be canceled, and it was difficult to play, but that did not stop Gabi from working on her game and playing her best. While of the teams LF faced were good competiors who wanted to win, that did not stop Gabi from playing her game and doing everything she could to pull off a win. Gabi's hard work and dedication paid off because she was named PCL's 3rd Team All Catholic!! Gabi was so excited and could not believe it! She was so happy and ecstatic when she heard the news! Gabi is excited to keep playing for LF and is ready to see what the furture holds!!

By Anna Golden '22

For most athletes, the past two years have been quite the struggle. When the COVID-19 pandemic first began in March 2020, one of the first things to pause was sports. Everything from practices to games was halted and athletes needed to pick up and start again fairly quickly when sports were reintroducted. Zoe Steinmetz, a member of the Little Flower Swim Team, swam her way back to success after a tough break from her beloved sport. 



Begining at age 10, she swam for the Bustelton Swim Club. At first, Zoe saw it only as a fun, meaningless hobby, but quickly realized the passion she felt for it. Soon, she decided to try out for a U.S.A swim team. However, she was crushed to find out she hadn't made the cut. Instead, she found the Northeast Swim Club and Coach Anthony Ppowell, the person who helped shape the simmer she is today.


As the years passed, she continued to crush her goals and set new ones. In that time, Zoe qualified and competed in the U.S.A Middle Atlantic Junior Olympics. Unfortnately, a few weeks before her competition at Easter Zones in New York, COVID struck. She was unalbe to swim for three months, resorting to at-home workouts. It took her almost an entire year of harsh training before she began to drop time and resotre her abilities. 




Last season, she overcame the obstacle of contracting COVID. This took place in the middle of Little Flower's condensed season. But with the support of her teamamtes, family, and especially Coach Sean Clothier, Zoe was able to bounce back and compete at Districts. Currently, she swims for Crystal Keelan at Penn Charter. With her help, she has been able to push herself to unimaginable limits. 



 

By Kaidence McCormac '24

Grace Mott, a current sophmore at Little Flower, is watching her dreams become a reality. On and off the track, she's been working and running harder than ever. Since third grade, Grace has been sprinting toward her finish line goals. Throughout her time at her grade school, Saint Christopher's, she dedicated most of her time to her outdoor track season. When she started high school at LF, she was very excited to be involved in both indoor and outdoor seasons. 



Starting track at the high school levle her freshmen year was a different experience. There were many new resitrictions placed because of the virus that could have created more challenges. That could never stop Grace. She soared through every challenge she faced and got a personal record at almost every meet. Grace then went on to Freshman Champs and edned up placing 2nd in both the 400 and 800 meter races. 

Grace's sophomore year started out stronger than ever. She put the time in to get even faster than before. Putting all the work and effort really paid off for Grace when she ended up hitting top 25 in the state in both of her events. Her dream come true continued when she ended up breaking the school record at Little Flower in the 1000. Grace celebrated her accomplishments with her friends, team, and coach and continues to make many proud as she continues her sophomore year. 


 

By: Katharine Vishio

As high school students, I think we can all agree that school is incredibly hard. We have homework, studying, projects, and an intense workload during class time. Imagine doing all that and playing a demanding sport like basketball. Ciara Corcoran ‘23 is used to the stress of both sports and school because she has been doing it her entire time at Little Flower. Seeing her do this for the past three years, I decided to ask her how she handles the stress of being one of the top students in the grade and a star basketball player. Ciara has been on the basketball team at Little Flower for three years now. She can play anywhere on the court but usually plays the position of shooting guard.



In playing the game comes many injuries, as most athletes can attest to, and Ciara is no stranger to them. She suffered a serious head injury her freshman year that left her not being able to play and partake in her usual activities. Ciara managed to recover from this injury her sophomore year and says the game she came back was her most memorable moment. Not only is she a star on the court, but off as well. Ciara receives top grades and is ranked 14 in the junior class. This year, Ciara was inducted into the National Honor Society (NHS) and shared her methods of staying on top of her studies. She says in her free time, she works on any assignments she has to do; that way, she gets it done before basketball. If she finds she has no assignments, Ciara instead decides to study for any upcoming tests or quizzes she may have. Ciara Corcoran is a dedicated student and athlete at Little Flower. She puts her all into every activity and does not let her school work fall behind. I would say that Ciara is an excellent depiction of what a fantastic student-athlete looks like. To Ciara, I wish you the best of luck with school and basketball this year and next.

For freshman Nashiya Morant, playing sports has always been her goal. She did not know which
ones, but she knew she would be playing whatever sport she picked all four years of high school.
During her eighth grade year, she said that volleyball caught her eye. When she got to high
school, she set her sights on track and field. Both of these sports have made Nashiya feel
welcomed at Little Flower.

When Nashiya was still in middle school, she dreamed about playing high school sports. She
found volleyball on the list of sports Little Flower offered and began watching videos of college
teams. She realized quickly that she would enjoy the sport. Nashiya was nervous initially when
trying out but soon settled in when she got to know the girls on the team. Through the kindness
of her teammates, Nashiya made friendships with many of her teammates that she hopes will last
a lifetime.

Although Nashiya always knew she wanted to play volleyball, track was a “spur of the moment”
thing. She says that she has always loved running and racing others, so she thought, “why not.”
Running is “in her blood” as her parents, siblings, grandparents, aunts, uncles, etc., have all been
runners. This year is her first year on an official track team because, during middle school,
Nashiya wanted to focus on her academics. Nashiya remembers a fond memory of running at her
track meets and hearing her coach and teammates cheering her on as she runs. Nashiya hopes to
PR at every meet she attends and try new events during this upcoming track season.
Nashiya Morant is a great athlete who has a passion for each sport she plays. The commitment
she has to her athletics is genuinely admirable. Throughout her next four years at Little Flower,
Nashiya hopes to grow as an athlete, person, and student, and the community at Little Flower
will always be cheering for her.