Being on a Y-ball team is a big part of a lot of the junior and senior boys’ lives here at York, but for senior Alexian Nevarez, ball really was life this season. Between school and a broken hand, Nevarez still made time to participate in the YMCA basketball league throughout the past few months.

Before Y-ball, Nevarez was on the York basketball team, but after playing Y-ball for a season, the decision was easy for him to choose between.

“I used to play for York, but I found that Y-ball gives me more freedom as a player as is just more fun to be a part of,” Nevarez said.

Since Y-ball is a local league, the boys often play against their friends, which brings a new competitive and exciting aspect to the court that initially drew Nevarez to the league.

“The fact that we know each other makes it so much more fun and competitive,” Nevarez said. “I like that I can show my talents to the entire league while playing with friends.”

Nevarez was an asset to the team in more ways than one; he brought skill, laughs, and helped unify the players to form the team that they became.

“He’s a scorer and a team leader,” senior and teammate Sam Kritikos said. “He doesn’t always pass much, but he brings a lot of passion to every game. He’s definitely our proverbial ‘star player.’”

Despite having a broken hand throughout most of the season, Nevarez overcame it and helped lead the team to prosper throughout the season.

“I used a hand brace and painkillers for the first month, but I played through it,” Nevarez said. “Then once it got a bit better I took the brace off and I couldn’t really feel it anymore, so I played the rest of the season.”

Luckily for Nevarez, being a part of the Y-ball league left him with enough time to still focus on his commitments outside of basketball.

“It is only about three hours a week,” Nevarez said. “You don’t really sacrifice anything, which is nice during the school year.”

With Nevarez’s high school career coming to an end in the spring, so will his Y-ball career. After the past two years of going to practices and games with his friends by his side, Nevarez has to hang his Y-ball jersey up for good.

“I’m really going to miss playing with and against my friends,” Nevarez said. “For the past two years I played alongside with some of my best friends and I’m going to miss that, but I’ll always think about all the good times we had when we were balling out.”