Media release: The establishment of a Booster Club has helped the athletic program at Saint Mary's Catholic School take off in the past year.
The Booster Club, which focuses heavily on middle school athletics, is organized and staffed by parent volunteers. "Our role is to give every student the opportunity to participate in a team-oriented sport of his or her choice while they are at Saint Mary's," Booster Club President Chuck Shaw said of the importance of launching the program. "We want to give every student the opportunity to grow, not only intellectually, but also athletically."
Since its inception in the fall of 2011, the Booster Club has seen middle school student athletes go from being scattered on various local recreational teams, or even playing for other schools' teams, to being unified as a Saint Mary's School program in a variety of sports offered over three seasons. Additionally, the school competes in a multi-city league that offers competitive play and tournaments against other independent Christian schools.
Middle school girls are now offered volleyball and cross country in the fall, basketball in the winter, and tennis in the spring. Middle school boys can compete in flag football and cross country in the fall, basketball in the winter, and tennis and baseball in the spring. Each of these teams is a Saint Mary's School sanctioned program representing the SMS Knights.
The program has also widened its capabilities in terms of hosting athletic events. During the 2011-2012 school year, the Booster Club installed new regulation basketball goals and began holding home games in the gymnasium. This fall, the school added two more sports hosted on site to that list, with volleyball using the gym and the creation of a regulation flag football field behind the school.
Elementary sports teams are also represented by the SMS Knights. Lower school students are offered basketball, fall and spring baseball, tennis, and cross country.
Student athletes have responded well to the improvements offered by the school. After little interest during the previous school year, the girls' volleyball turned out 20 student athletes, and led by former University of Hawaii player and assistant coach Aaron Wilton, cruised to a 2nd place overall finish in the league. The boys' flag football team, in its inaugural season, also placed 2nd in their league, and many runners from the cross country team represented Saint Mary's at the Berry Great Pumpkin Run, where they won ten 1st-3rd place trophies and six additional 4th-10th place medals in ten races.
"I'm so impressed by the way our parents, students, and school leaders have come together to help create this amazing sports program," said Athletic Director Justin Merriam. "Saint Mary's has always been a top player in the community when it comes to academics. Now we are ready to show all that we've got on the field, too."
No comments:
Post a Comment