Under The Spotlight: Thriving Under Pressure
- delbosques
- 8 hours ago
- 7 min read
The last seconds are waning away. You feel the burden of expectations. Whether you're on the free-throw line, in the on-deck circle, or serving for match point, it doesn't change how the weight of each action is magnified. In that moment, there is no room for hesitation, only pressure. For student athletes, pressure doesn't end once the game is over—it keeps going in classrooms, weight rooms, personal lives—shaping every decision they make.
On the surface, the perception of a student-athlete is glamorous...flashing lights, thunderous crowds, and powerful athleticism on full display. Behind the scenes, it is rife with challenges. Juggling demanding training, competitions, and academic work leaves little time for personal development, relaxation, or clear thought. There are pressing external forces—all the coaches, teammates, family members, and fans, each with their own expectations of success.
The weight of expectations can either drive you forward or hold you back. How do you handle the pressure when it feels like the world is watching?
To gain deeper insight into how athletes and coaches handle pressure, I spoke with WVC baseball player Dylan Thompson and WVC Men's Basketball Head Coach Terrance McGee. Their experiences highlight the challenges of high-stakes moments and the mental strategies needed to overcome them.
The Nature of Pressure: Where Does It Come From?
For most athletes, feeling pressured is a natural aspect of sports. Some may explain that it is a pain in the chest, a pounding heart, or an unnatural urgency to act before executing a significant play. But what causes the pressure they feel? Is it external from others, coaches, fans, or teammates? Or, is it an internal standard they created for themselves?
Athletes feel a great deal of expectation from the external world. Whether it is a coach giving a player a hard truth, a spectator staring a hole in them at an inopportune moment, or a teammate depending on them for a significant play, an outside pressure is influencing them. For many athletes, the hardest pressure doesn’t come from others—it comes from within. The need to always perform well, to stay at their best, or to avoid letting others down can weigh heavily on them.
Dylan Thompson - WVC Baseball shared his perspective on where that pressure really comes from:
"I think (pressure) is definitely internal. It's just me trying to prove a point to myself and everybody else that I belong here".
Thompson underscores how internal pressure can be even more intense than external pressure. It’s not just about meeting others' expectations, but about validating one's own place and worth, both on and off the field.
Defining moments: When Pressure Push Limits
Almost every athlete can remember a time in their career when the pressure brought them to their knees. Thompson shared a time when he came to the mound in an important game and allowed the pressure to take away his clarity. He made one of his worst mistakes. In that moment, self-doubt crept in, and seconds felt like minutes. Anyone could relate. But, learning and growth come from mistakes. Some athletes learn to transform the moments that define them into resilience, while others spend too much time dwelling on it rather than moving past it.
Dylan Thompson reflected on his experience pitching in a high-stakes game against a top-ranked team:
“I had to start our state game against the number 20 team in the nation… I definitely felt some pressure, but I was able to overcome that through breathing.”
This adds a real-life example of how pressure can affect performance. It shows that, in high-stress moments, athletes often feel that weight, but how they handle it—through breathing or other coping mechanisms—can be the key to overcoming it.
Coaches experience these moments firsthand as they watch emptiness invade their athletes with drooping shoulders, defeated faces, and silent self-criticism. WVC Men's Basketball Coach
Terrance McGee emphasized that recognizing when athletes are struggling with internal pressure is important for their development. Understanding that pressure often stems from deeper emotions or external triggers helps both athletes and coaches approach those high-pressure moments with empathy and strategic support.
“I don’t automatically go to, ‘Oh, they’re not good enough.’ I go to, ‘Is something triggering them or bothering them?’”
The Mental Battle: Coping Strategies in High-Stress Situations
So, how do athletes cope with these pressure-filled instances? Many of them turn to self-talk, simply reminding themselves that they should focus on controlling what they can control rather than worrying about what they can’t control. Others establish routines, such as deep breathing or visualization exercises, as a way to reset their minds after they make a mistake. Many others seek out their teammates, either as a source of encouragement, or simply as a way to find comfort in the agony of collectively being in the trenches together.
Confidence plays a pivotal role in how pressure is handled and, again, confidence is dynamic. Some athletes believe that confidence comes from gaining momentum over time, built through an identical and consistent training stimulus, while others believe that confidence comes and goes based on performance. Many athletes are motivated by the fear of failure, but the athletes who learn to accept failure as a stepping stone rather than a road block, tend to find ways to perform under pressure.
Dylan Thompson emphasized the importance of staying grounded in high-pressure moments by using a simple but powerful strategy:
“I have the word ‘breathe’ written on my glove to remind me before every pitch.”
Thompson’s approach highlights how small cues, like the word “breathe,” can help athletes stay present, manage stress, and remain focused on the task at hand. Mental strategies like this can make all the difference in performance when the pressure is on.
Coach McGee shared how his experience allows him to face pressure without being overwhelmed:
“Sometimes I have to sit back and take a deep breath and focus on the little things.”
This speaks to the importance of breaking down overwhelming situations into smaller, manageable steps. By staying present and focused on the small details, athletes and coaches alike can reduce the feeling of pressure and stay in control of the situation.
Beyond the Game: The Influence of Pressure on Life and Team Culture
Pressure does not just exist within sport; it exists in the world outside of sports: at school, at work, within relationships, even when just hanging out with friends. Athletes learn to manage pressure in sports, which translates to their ability to deal with the stress and expectations outside of competition.
Some coaches intentionally foster a team culture where players feel comfortable speaking about mental health. Thompson added his perspective on the importance of mental training:
“I think the mental part is just as important, if not more, than the physical part because if you’re not in a good mental space, the physical part doesn’t matter.”
This reinforces the idea that mental resilience is just as crucial as physical strength in sports. Without mental clarity and stability, physical ability can’t be fully realized, making mental training just as important in an athlete’s preparation.
Coach McGee believes that mental strength is not just a part of performance but also essential for fostering a strong team culture. His approach to developing players goes beyond just physical skills—he emphasizes the importance of creating accountability and strong bonds among teammates:
“We put them in situations in practice where they need their teammates in order to win.”
“We do peer accountability—after practice, players evaluate whether their teammates followed through on what they said they’d work on. When you hear it from your peer, the bond gets stronger.”
Coach McGee’s focus on peer accountability and teamwork helps build a supportive environment where athletes can thrive under pressure. This culture of trust and mutual responsibility ensures that the team functions well, even when individual pressures weigh heavily on players.
The Turning Point: Resilience through Adversity
An athlete's true character is revealed not when everything is going well but when they deal with disappointment. For many people, dealing with pressure is not a question about avoiding mistakes, but experiencing them and learning to come back from them. They may never be the hero of the moment or earn the accolades they deserve, but learning to come back is what characterizes their experience as someone committed to the team. As Coach McGee pointed out, developing resilience involves embracing the challenge, learning from mistakes, and continuing to grow.
“I would probably go about 60/40—development with players and winning.”
The Reflection
In the end, the stresses that student-athletes endure are not just challenges to manage, but opportunities for development and transformation. They provide experience and lessons in resilience, time management, and mental toughness. It is a process that involves sacrifice, hard work, and a level of focus that most people cannot appreciate unless they have been in a similar circumstance. For those who embrace that stress and find a way to harness that energy toward motivation, it becomes a power source. For others, it may remain a struggle, something they learn to manage as they continue to develop. But, it is clear, wherever they are in this journey, the stress of performance makes them stronger, more determined, and, ultimately, more prepared for life beyond the game. And for those who have stood in the spotlight, winning or losing, there is one truth: they have been changed by the weight of expectation. And in the end, it isn't the stress that defines them, it is how they harness that stress that makes all the difference.
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