Senior cheer captain, Marlee Smith says she motivates her teammates by giving them candies. “As cheesy as this is, I gave all my teammates candy with little sayings on it such as a Push Pop that says ‘always keeping pushing to work hard and do better things.’”

Being a captain is a big responsibility and can come with a lot of pressure. Sometimes in order to reduce the stress and nerves of a game, viking captains will use their own tactics to motivate and encourage their team and help them calm these nerves. The Triton Voice asked some of Triton’s senior captains to share their thoughts on being a captain and what they do to pump up their teammates for a game.

-What do you believe is your most important role as a captain for your team?

Finlay McIsaac, Cross Country:

“Leading by example so the younger athletes on the team know what it’s like to train and compete.”

Sofie DeSimone, Field Hockey:

“My most important role is probably being a good role model and giving 100% effort in practices and games in order to motivate the rest of the girls and set a good example.”

Marlee Smith, Cheer:

“I think the most important role as a captain is to keep positive vibes and good energy throughout practices. I try to always be motivating and be a role model for my younger teammates.”
Steven Particelli, Football:

“I believe the most important role as a captain is to set a good example for the rest of the guys on the team and to just always be there to help or support everyone.”

-What kinds of things do you do to motivate your team for a big game or sport event?

Finlay McIsaac, Cross Country:

“Before all the meets, the team huddles up and the captains tell the team to race hard and focus.”
Sofie DeSimone, Field Hockey:

“To motivate my team for a big game, we write captains letters for each girl and decorate them. We also go all out in dress up days and listen to music.”

Marlee Smith, Cheer:

“To motivate my team, we like to yell a lot and always be positive to keep everyone’s spirits up. For competitions as a captain, I make letters for each individual girl on the team which includes what they should focus on and that they should keep working hard and to never give up.”
Steven Particelli, Football:

“Usually to motivate everyone at least one of our captains will give a speech pregame, usually Tommy, and it really gets everyone going and ready to play.”

-After a loss or bad game, what are some things you do to motivate the team to win the next time around?

Finlay McIsaac, Cross Country:

“We haven’t lost a meet and we hope to continue this streak, but when someone has a bad race or a bad day at practice we tell them to focus, train harder and come back the next day ready to compete.”
Sofie DeSimone, Field Hockey:

“After a loss or bad game, we have to make sure we keep a positive outlook and help use that as motivation to get back to work.”

Marlee Smith, Cheer:

“If my team has a bad competition, we try to forget it ever happened and move on. To motivate my team, we continue working harder and we practice as hard as we can. If we lose, there is no fooling around and we take everything seriously in hopes to be better at the next competition.”
Steven Particelli, Football:

“After a tough loss we try to keep a positive feel to the locker room, trying not to let anyone get too down on themselves and also we just try to motivate everyone to come back next week and change the result around to a ‘W.’”

These Viking captains have shown that their role is not just about wearing the “C” on their jersey or the status of “being a captain,” it’s much more. Being a captain includes a lot of dedication, hard work, and being a role model for other teammates.