Sophomore Michael Kramer is in his first season on the Varsity Boys Soccer Team at Brighton. He is doing very well in his first season and is enjoying it so far. “I feel like it’s going great. Right now, we’re 5-2-1 and only getting better. I feel like we are building better chemistry and getting together as a team. I’m just excited and honored to be a part of it,” Kramer said.
Getting moved up to varsity was a big deal to Kramer and said he is making the most of his opportunity. “For me, it was a combination of a bunch of different feelings: excitement, nervousness, anticipation, amongst others. It is a whole different level than JV. The speed of play goes up, the quality goes up, and the stakes go up too. It was a big change, but it was a challenge I was willing to accept,” Kramer commented.
To Kramer, the Brighton Soccer Team means a lot to him and says the team is more like a family and would do anything for them. “We’re more than just a team. We’re a family. We believe in ourselves, and we believe in one another. We know we can hang with the best in the state and we truly believe that we are good enough to make it to the state final when November rolls around,” Kramer added.
The game that Kramer is most known for was earlier this year at Plymouth where Kramer scored his first varsity goal and then scored two more while down 2-1 to end up winning 3-2. “It was crazy!” Kramer exclaimed. “To score my first varsity goal was a great feeling and then to score two more after that and win the game. It was a great team win; our whole team came out and fought together for that win. To come back from two goals down was incredible,” Kramer continued.
To mentally prepare for a game, Kramer makes sure he stays focused on the task at hand and doesn’t worry about making any mistakes during the games. “I try to stay focused on the task at hand and not worry about other things. I also try not to worry about messing up or making a mistake because all I have to do is work that much harder to win it back,” Kramer stated.
Kramer has learned a whole lot about playing varsity soccer this season and will take those lessons into the next few years of his soccer career. “I learned what’s it’s like to represent your school at the highest level. Obviously, on JV, you can still represent your school, but there’s something special to be wearing your school’s colors and playing for them on a varsity team,” Kramer said.
Soccer has taught Kramer a lot of lessons as well and will use the lessons he learned in soccer for the rest of his life. “It taught me how to be a part of something bigger than myself, a team. Being a part of a team, a family, all working for a common goal is something extraordinary that you can’t experience in a lot of things,” Kramer mentioned.