When it comes to describing Matthew Hecomovich, few terms fit better than athlete. You might have seen proof of this in his daily runs around the neighborhood, or early morning sessions in the weight room. But above all, Matt’s athleticism is embodied in his long-standing relationship with a range of sports. He reminisces how he played, “[In] childhood, soccer for a few years. Baseball for one. I got a concussion — that was incredible…volleyball, found that, been doing that for many years, at least seven. Also picked up running…joined cross country this year.” 

Sports have played many roles throughout Matt’s life. “Obviously, there’s the physical,” he notes. “You grow, you improve your capabilities; coordination, stamina, strength, all that.”

Matt pauses, then adds, “But I feel like there’s a really important mental aspect, you know? It’s endurance of the mind, strength of the spirit. You learn how to work on a team…how to boost people up and stop yourself from falling down.” 

Volleyball has been Matt’s longest-enduring sport, his journey having begun early in his childhood. “It’s like a family thing for us. My mom is really into it, my dad got really into it…so there was an expectation of ‘you gotta just keep doing it.’” 

Matt first played all the way back in Sutter Elementary. He continued playing volleyball through most of his time at Peterson, and has played for three out of four years at Wilcox, reaching varsity. Over his volleyball career, Matt’s been through tournaments all the way from Orlando, to Dallas, to Chicago. 

At Wilcox, Matt played libero for his team: the rearmost passing position. “Typically…[libero is] a lot shorter than the average volleyball height,” Matt says, laughing. “It’s the position people get shoehorned into when everyone else outgrows them.” 

But Matt’s relationship with volleyball hasn’t been perfect. “Not to dissuade anyone, but it’s a very toxic team sport,” Matt admits. “Everyone wants to win, and everyone gets mad when any little thing goes wrong.” He adds, “I…grew from that, but I also regressed in a lot of ways.” 

Matt left volleyball with important lessons about sports, and the role it plays in his life. “I learned how to keep everyone together, how to keep the energy in a positive, fun, joking way. That’s something I think I’ve taken very strongly out of volleyball: one, how to keep going when a lot of other people would’ve been broken. And two, how to keep other people from breaking.” 

Currently, Matt is doing his first year of cross-country, as a varsity player. “The atmosphere and feel of it is great…I wish I had done it sooner.” When not at events, Matt mentions that the cross-country team has daily practices and optional long runs on Saturday. “Partially why I love cross country…[is] it’s a pure effort sport. It’s pure consistency.” 

I also asked Matt his favorite memories with each sport. “This is gonna sound really strange for volleyball. The times when it’s been really terrible — and then you’re just able to push through and make things work…going to really big volleyball tournaments is [also] fun. You get that sheer magnitude of how big it is…but then you carve out your spot in the tournament.” 

“Cross-country…has the really beautiful small moments, too. Basically any moment with teammates, I’ve loved cross-country. Everyone is so non-confrontational and chill.” As far as cross-country races themselves go, Matt says, “I love the ending. And by contrast, I hate the start — the start is genuinely a stampede…The ending is great because everyone is dying….[and] I’m able to dig in the deepest energy reserves I have and just, sprint past everyone.” 

Despite its ups and downs, sports remain a huge part of Matt’s life. Speaking to how he carves time out from studying for sports, Matt recalls a quote: “I think it was Socrates…[who said] to be the best student, you have to also develop not just your mind but your body.” 

“I massively paraphrase that. But I like that idea. Your mind is definitely the most valuable area, but it’s not the only area. For people not to connect with a very significant area of how they exist in the world? You’re neglecting something there.”