Sports system
American high schools have a completely different sports system than we know it from germany.
In the U.S. the students have a very large sports offer. All sports are assigned to a certain season. For example, you can only play football in the fall season and baseball in the spring. In winter season you can do especially wrestling and basketball. The cheerleaders can prove their talent twice a year. They perform at the home games of their football team and in winter season they go to different competitions. Due to the fact that each sport takes place only at a certain time you have the opportunity to try several sports. In addition, you get to know more people if you're not always on the same team. This also helps with the school spirit and strengthens the cooperation of the entire school. Especially by the fact that a few sports such as cheerleading and football are connected with each other also brings different students together.
The games they play against other schools or the competitions they have are not always on the same day. They are distributed throughout the week except Monday and Sunday.
Northern High School doesn’t have a summer season just because the students have a 3 month summer holiday. Every sport has its own coach. For example the boys baseball varsity team has another coach than the girls baseball varsity team. This shows how focused the school is on having the perfect team with the best coach to make everyone better in what they are doing for sports. By the fact that they know their coach very well after working together with them all time they also know what they want to see. In addition to have a coach who is focused on you as a team has also more benefits than disadvantages. The coach has no other team in mind he or she is focused to make the team they are coaching as good as possible.
Sports at Northern High School
· Baseball
Baseball is a team game played by 9 players per team. In baseball you have one person pitching a ball towards the hitter and you have to hit the ball as far as you can. After hitting the ball you have to run around 4 bases to complete a run. Your opponent can try to tag you out before finishing your run to stop you from scoring.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
· Basketball
Basketball is a team game played with 5 active players per side. The players try to throw the ball into a hoop to score points. The game is separated in 4x12 minute quarters.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Boys Freshman
o Girls Varsity
- Bocce
Played on an asphalt or natural soil court in teams of two, three, four or between two players. One player throws a smaller ball and all players have to bowl as near to the ball as possible.
Teams:
o Coed Varsity
o Coed Unified
- Cross Country
Cross Country means running different races on outdoor courses over natural terrain. You can run in teams or as an individual.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Girls Varsity
- Field Hockey
Field hockey is a game played by 2 teams with 11 players. Every player has a stick curved at the end to hit the small ball they are playing with. On every side of the field is a goal. The team with more goals after 70 minutes wins.
Teams:
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
- Football
Team game played by 11 players per team. To win you have to get more points then your opponent. With a touchdown you score 6 points and with a field goal you score 2 points.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Boys Freshman
- Golf
Golf is played with a maximum of 14 clubs. You try to bring a small ball with your club in a hole marked with a coloured flag. The distance from the start to the hole is always different.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Girls Varsity
- Lacrosse – Boys
Lacrosse is played in teams. Every player uses a stick with a mesh or a net. You can catch, carry and pass the ball to your teammates. The team with more goals wins the game.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
- Lacrosse – Girls
(same as the boys)
Teams:
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
- Soccer
Soccer is a team game played 90 minutes with 11 players per side. You have some players outside so you can switch if someone gets injured. You play soccer with your feet and try to bring the ball into the goal of the other team. The team with more goals wins.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
Softball
Team game played by 9 players per team. One player hits the ball with a bat and tries to run around the 4 bases to score before an other player tags him out. It’s a softer version of baseball.
Teams:
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
- Swimming
At swimming competitions you are swimming in different strokes trying to be the fastest at the distance.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Girls Varsity
- Tennis
Tennis is played with 2 or 4 players. The individuals or teams are separated by a net running across the centre of the court. You are playing with a racket and try to score. You score when the other player can’t reach the ball or is unable to return the ball within the court.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
- Track – Outdoor
At Track you run most of the time as an individual accept from running in relays. You can do jumps, throwing, sprints or long distance.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Girls Varsity
- Volleyball
Volleyball is a team game played by 6 players per team. The players are only allowed to play with their hands. The court is separated by a net. They try to bring the ball over the net and to bounce it in the opponents half. Volleyball is played in best of 5 or 3 sets.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Junior Varsity
o Girls Varsity
o Girls Junior Varsity
- Wrestling
If you are doing wrestling you have one opponent. You try to force your opponent to touch the ground with some part of his body accept the feet for a minimum length of time.
Teams:
o Boys Varsity
o Boys Freshman
o Girls Varsity
Varsity —> often there are to many people for one team. That’s why they split them up in a varsity team. They are the best players of the school. The others built a second team.
Freshman —> they are the 9th graders of the school
Football at NHS and its impact on school spirit
At many schools in the United States the football season takes great place in supporting the local school spirit. Northern High School's football games are a very popular meet for multiple students in Dillsburg. Every friday in the fall there is not only the football game but a big meet with food, music and a lot fun for teenagers.
Football season at Northern High school doesn't just mean the sport. Football involves many more people than just the players. The school has a voted student representation, the student leaders. They tell all the students what events they should go to and support their school. An example are posters in the lunch halls to remind people about the weekly football game with informations about time and place. A more popular remind are multiple instagram posts on the official accounts of the school. All week long, the school is trying to get as much people’s attention to the Friday nights football game. A famous saying is called “Sport brings people together". Football season brings many different students together even though some of them may not even be interested in the sport or in plying it. It's an easy way of uniting the school and building a community. Students with dozens of different ethnicities, religions, and beliefs have the opportunity to meet each other and support the common cause of football. It also brings teenagers from all different friend groups together to have a good time.
But the games are not only fun for the people watching. Having a big student section can heighten the experience for the viewers and the athletes. Many people in the stadium and a cheering student section can impact the game positively and is a great support for all football players.
Summarized, school spirit creates a positive sporting environment for all at football games.
The great thing about football season is that it does not only involve the sport itself but so much more. A consistent part of the games are the cheerleaders and the marching band as well as the color guards. This leads to a larger community of completely different groups of people.
The cheerleaders are leaders of the whole student section. It’s a big group of usually girls. They play a magnificent role for the school spirit. At every Friday night game cheerleaders are there to cheer the stands on. They are dancing and singing short and memorable slogans towards the students supporting the team. All teenagers can join and feel the strong cohesion of the student section. At Northern High School the cheerleaders are also wearing their uniforms on friday´s all day long in school, so that there is an extra advertising for the games.
Often color guards are working hand in hand together with the marching band. Color guards, or also called the flag corps are dancers who perform a specific choreographed dance to the music of the marching band. They can use various equipments but flags are their most common props. Usually, they are responsible for a pretty show and the entertainment before the game even starts and during halftime. They dress nicely and always adapted to today's event or spirit week day of the game.
The marching band is also responsible for entertaining the students before the game and during halftime. For the small shows at these times at the football games both groups prepare about ten to fifteen minutes of music and dance. The whole band has their instruments with them and all of them play practiced songs on the football field while walking to create a pretty view for the stands. But normally, they do a little more than the color guards because at many games the band players stay the whole game and sit right next to the student section in the stands to play some music during the game. This is supposed to cheer the players but also the students on and to create more fun at the games.
Due to this connection between all these completely different sport and music groups is a strong school spirit.