Ballarat Grammar student off to a flying start balancing sport with study

SINCE joining Ballarat Grammar’s boarding house in Year 10, Maggie has upped her involvement in sporting leagues and extra-curricular sport, while maintaining her studies.

Competitive edge: Ballarat Grammar Year 11 boarding student Maggie Caris strives to balance sport with her studies.

BALLARAT Grammar student Maggie Caris is off to a flying start this year.

The Year 11 boarder from Horsham is in Brisbane this week, vying for a place on the national U17 Australia netball team.

“I was fortunate enough to be selected last year,” said the 16-year-old, who was modest about her sporting achievements.

Maggie will represent Victoria in Queensland at the National Netball Championships, where the nation’s best young netballers compete in U17 and U19 age groups.

If her current form is anything to go by, she has a good chance of repeating her success last year, when she was chosen to play for Australia.

Last year, Maggie was crowned Sports Star of 2018 by the Wimmera Regional Sports Assembly.

Just as talented on the oval as the netball court, Maggie plays footy for the Great Western Rebels and is in the AFLW academy.

Not to be outdone by older sister Rene, who debuted for the Geelong Cats this year, Maggie is a force in her own right and has sights set on playing footy at top level.

Since joining Ballarat Grammar’s boarding house in Year 10, Maggie has upped her involvement in sporting leagues and extra-curricular sport, while maintaining her studies.

“Here there are a whole range of activities that I never knew existed,” Maggie said. “I never really got involved in extra-curricular activities before. But at Ballarat Grammar, the opportunities and school spirit are way above what I had ever been involved in before.

“I try to involve myself in as many school extra-curricular activities I can — tennis, cricket.”

She said the school had given her more access to high level sport opportunities “without clocking up the kms on the car or on the bus”.

“The school and boarding house are flexible and understand my hours with netball games,” she said. “They know my study times have to be adjusted and sometimes I have to leave earlier or come back later. I’m just lucky the staff here are very allowing for that.”

A school-wide mentor program assigns a staff member to groups of students, and offers them wellbeing support through their years at the school.

Maggie said her mentor has helped her keep the academic-sporting balance manageable.

“My current mentor, Mr Hanlon, is quite a sportsman himself,” Maggie said. “He is always checking on me with my mental wellbeing and stress loads.

“I’m pretty invested in my schooling, so have to maintain balance across everything I do.”

Ballarat Grammar’s open morning is Friday, November 8, from 9am.

Boarding tours are also available by appointment.