High school sports have large impacts on students who share a love for the game. Fall sports at Cherokee High School, located in Marlton, New Jersey, consist of ten different athletics. Among the most successful teams, Women’s Field Hockey went 15 and 6 this season, ranking first overall in the Olympic American conference. The number-one-seed ended its season with a loss in the NJSIAA South Jersey Group 4 Final, which, regardless of the loss, was an incredible season with tremendous progress through the competition.
As the season concluded, Cherokee’s midfielder and captain Addison Schramm (’26), was interviewed to share her outlook and the impact of her final season. When asked about the experience she had among the last four years and how that would stick with her through college, she responded with the most impactful lessons she was taught: “It matters that you want to be there for your teammates and you want to win for them instead of yourself.”
Schramm goes on to express the values of being a good teammate and how respecting others is “more than how many stats you have or how many goals you have.” This outlook emphasizes the values of the team showing how not only did the effort take them far, their dedication to each other took them even further.
Schramm, though going to college for lacrosse, took many values and life lessons from the team that not only helped with the sport but helped more with the values of the person she will become.
“It taught me a lot more than just the actual sport of field hockey, it taught me how to become a better teammate, a better person, how to be a leader, and how to treat people with respect.”
Not only does the impact go deeper than the athletic aspects, it goes into the morals and life-long values of a person. Values that last and are displayed in many different parts of life, regarding work, school, relationships, and overall the person one grows into.
The connection between an athlete and their teammates is unmatched, but the impact of the coaches at Cherokee High School goes just as far. Mrs. Devon Franks is both a history teacher and the Varsity Field Hockey Coach, leading the Chiefs as head coach since 2016 following her own playing days at Cherokee through the 2005 – 09 seasons. Coach Franks has reached the milestone of “100 Varsity Wins” as of October 2025, the same season as the team’s Olympic American conference win.
Coach Franks’ name is spoken very highly of by Schramm as she was a rock for the young athlete through her four years at Cherokee.
“Coach Franks really paved the way for me, and it made it a lot easier to be a part of the team. I really grew a connection with her. She really believed in me when I didn’t really think I could.”
Schramm was not only taught the techniques of the sport, but she was most importantly pushed to believe those techniques were something she was more than capable of.
“The confidence she gave me and just the ability to be myself is something that I’ll hold with me forever” Schramm says, reflecting back on all the moments and inspirational talks Franks gave her that will stick with her as a continuing athlete through college.
Schramm was asked about the impact the sport had on her, but the question now is the impact she hopes to leave behind. The impact she aspires to have on the underclassmen after her time at Cherokee has concluded.
“I hope to leave an example of respect for your teammates and just the mentality that you can do hard things. I think that’s a big theme in our program; overcoming obstacles and improving yourself,” displaying the impact she hopes to leave behind, what she learned from the program, and how she hopes to keep those values alive as the years continue.
When asked about this, she included what she would tell her younger self, the young freshman coming in not knowing what to expect.
“I’d probably tell her to just enjoy every minute of it, no matter how hard the runs are, because now, four years later, It’s really hard to just walk away from this.”
Her words speak to many seniors when they realize just how fast the past four years went. Schramm expresses how every minute counts regardless of how challenging, emphasizing the morals this team stresses during each season.
Schramm was asked the following question of “How would you describe your last four years on this team in only three words?” Schramm’s response expressed not only the group enjoyment, but the personal, mental, and emotional enjoyment one gets out of each season.
“Well. First I’ll say, obviously, fun, it’s definitely fun.”
Among other things, the enjoyment you get out of playing a sport is always one of the most important things when being a student athlete. Incorporating drive, determination and fun all together is what delivers a team to a successful finish.
“My second word I would use would have to be challenging because sometimes it wasn’t easy,” Schramm says, showing that not all things you love can be easy to handle. Things that are enjoyable and a passion of yours are things worth fighting for. Don’t expect triumph and success to come easily, things that you work for will always be more rewarding than things handed to you.
For her third word, Schramm expressed her definition of “rewarding.”
“Third I’ll say rewarding, because I think, without the trophies, and being conference champions this year, which yes was a big accomplishment, it was more rewarding in so many other aspects. Like just having the privilege to be a part of the team.”
Schramm’s outlook on the definition of this word displays the view of what a true reward is. The reward isn’t the physical trophies you’re handed, it’s the opportunities you’re given.
“I saw so much growth in our team, and that was most rewarding to see that after playing for four years.”
