Ally Christopher

Addie Czuppon (12) guards a player from the basket during senior night. “I started in Kindergarten with Queen and I played Queen ball until eighth grade,” Addie said. “And I played Oakville Junior Tigers from third grade to eighth, it’s just ever since I was little.” The girls had banners with balloons and flowers waiting for them during their senior night game.

In an athlete’s senior year, many opportunities are coming to a close. For Addie Czuppon (12), this was the perfect chance to meet some of her highest goals and hit a number of new achievements, getting 1000 career points for basketball and being awarded Conference player of the Year for the sport.

“It was exciting,” Addie said. “I didn’t think I could do it at the beginning of the year so when I did it was cool.”

In addition to her accomplishments in basketball, Addie has been taking off in her volleyball career as well.

“I hit 500 kills in volleyball,” Addie said. “All of my friends and family came to that game so it was fun.”

With all of her friends and family by her side, one member in particular took a special interest in all of Addie’s athletic efforts.

“She was also Conference Player of the Year for volleyball this past fall and is tenth on the OHS career kills list with 588 and the second highest kills in a season with 301,” Athletic director and mother Becky Czuppon said. “And, she was Conference Player of the Year for basketball as a Junior.”

While she works hard on the court, this isn’t the only place that Addie uses to her advantage.

“She works hard at school and on her own time to get better at things,” Becky said. “She has done this since she was little.”

In order to perfect her performance, hours outside of school proved to be a great time for improving her skills.

“I worked during the summer and just shot outside for about two hours every day,” Addie said. “I just worked my hardest. I got it (Conference player of the year) last year, so I knew if I work hard and do the same things from last year but better, then I can get it again.”

While she was riding a high at the end of the basketball season, there were times where this wasn’t always the case.

“Sometimes I go through shooting blocks,” Addie said. “There was probably four or five games in a row where I could not hit a shot from out far which sucks, but after I have a good game it all comes back.”

Being able to bounce back into her groove is a talent learned from many years of practice alongside her best friend.

“I’m definitely gonna miss playing with my best friend Sami [Simokaitis (12)],” Addie said. “We’ve played basketball, volleyball — everything together since we were in kindergarten so to be on the court with her one last time was fun but it also sucked.”

Though she may not get to play with Simokaitis anymore, Addie is far from done with her basketball career and her highschool experience is only helping her.

“I think I’m going to play somewhere small in college for basketball,” Addie said. “So the achievements show that I actually can play.”

Despite her excitement for college basketball, Addie remains reminiscent about her time at Oakville.

“I like that my teammates trust me and my coaches do too,” Addie said. “I know that they trust me and I can do it. And that’s all I need, I love it. I love when I can get my friends to come to the game and they support me and cheer on the team.”

Throughout all of the four years she has spent playing highschool basketball and volleyball, Addie has made an impact on spectators in the stands.

“[I feel] Proud,” Becky said. “I’ve shed lots of tears this year seeing Addie do great things.”

With Addie’s four years at an end, she bonds with her mother’s experience and will similarly continue on in the world of athletics.

“I played high school volleyball, basketball and track and it is so cool to see yourself doing that again through the eyes of your child,” Becky said. “Hopefully the concept of ‘put your head down and go work’ carries on throughout her life and makes her successful for years to come. In all aspects.”