Ms. Holbrook, the anatomy teacher here at Oliver Ames High School, has a wealth of knowledge in the world of sports unlike any other. Whether from physical participation or coaching from the sidelines, she has accomplished things that most people can only dream of.
The things that Ms. Holbrook did during her high school sporting career are unprecedented in today’s landscape. The work load that she took on just so she could succeed in her activities is something that would be a near impossible challenge for the average student athlete.
“Uh, in high school I was the first four sport athlete. And I still to this day have more varsity letters than anybody that’s graduated from Dedham High School. So, I played field hockey, basketball, softball, and I was also a thrower for the track team. So, because softball and track were during the spring, I would practice throwing at lunch because I had softball practice after school, so I couldn’t do both of those at the same time.”
Participating in all of these different activities required a high level of balance and level-headedness. Coming from a different era of high school sports where the rules for separation were very different, partaking in the balancing act was very important for Ms. Holbrook.
“I found that preparation and organization skills were really important as a student. I think I learned that from my dad, and he was a tremendous athlete at Dedham High School, as was my brother. And so I was surrounded by them because I participated in sports at a time that was before Title 9. So my participation was based on what my brother’s participation was, as well as my dad’s, so they taught me very good organizational skills.”
While she accomplished many incredible things under the spotlight herself, she accomplished even more while helping others get their spotlight. Her prowess for the game allowed her to make it to some of the grandest stages and receive some of the highest honors for a coach.
“In 2017, I was chosen to coach the East girl’s team for the McDonald’s All American. And so I had to prepare twelve athletes who I had never met before. They were the twelve out of the twenty four best high school girls basketball players in the country. So I had to get them ready to play two games on ESPN, and I only had four days to do it. And what I did was I asked my community service student here at Oliver Ames High School to look up those twelve girls, where they went to high school, where they were planning on going to play for college, so when I first met them, I taught them a really important life lesson in the sense that preparation is the key to success, and you never get a second chance to make a first impression.”
Through her years of experience, Ms. Holbrook has gained a solid idea of what the foundations of a team should look like. Being able to portray a good team environment is something that she values and always made sure to reinstate to her teams.
“I think it’s important for student athletes to recognize that they’re doing something that’s bigger than themselves. One of the things I would always try to inspire in my student athletes here at Oliver Ames High School was to remember that you have what you have because of who came before you, and that it was really important that you recognize that you are a part of something bigger, and it’s not about you, it’s about us. I always had this mentality that it was a we mentality versus a me mentality. And I think that really helped them grow as people, and that, to me, was one of the most important parts about participation in sport.”
Throughout the years, the ways of coaching have changed from the time that Ms. Holbrook was in the saddle. Looking back at when she was coaching and viewing them against what is happening now is something that she has done.
“I think that Coach Costello has done an absolutely amazing job because he continues to carry on the legacy of Oliver Ames Girls Basketball. I’m grateful that he is technically way ahead of where I would have been in terms of how to use social media appropriately, how to focus our current student athletes towards that mindset of we versus me, and I’m really happy what he’s doing to carry on that tradition.”
Lastly, Ms. Holbrook has thoughts on the current state of the sports world. There are things that she made paramount to her athletes that seemed to have been lost or altered over the years.
“I think absolutely, make sure, I mean sometimes it’s difficult because there’s a lot of parental oversight. And one of the things about participating in high school sports is that you need to recognize that you’re trying to build something that is, again, about you. Why are you doing this? Why are you playing? It’s important that you do this in a way that it’s for your own personal growth, because skills as an athlete will transfer into skills as an adult. And that to me is an incredibly important asset.”
