Crowds, do they help players or not?

Surrounded by laughter, emotion, and blue powder I was inspired by the uplifiting spirit football games have. Being an athlete myself, I began to think about the players’ perspective, and how compelling it must be for the crowd to react in such a positive way. Talking among my fellow athletes, I confirmed that support and positivity increases player performance and that we, as a student body, should support each other by attending more sports games.

“[The crowd] really makes you feel good,” running back and middle linebacker sophomore Brian Paez said. “All these people come out here to support us and it keeps you going when you’re tired.”

Not only can the players feel the emotion of the crowd when they cheer, but they feel a physical presence with such a large body of supporters. Crowd engagement is a priority to teams, especially to football, because the school spirit is what gives the players motivation to work past the pressure of the game. 

“Athletes go through a lot of stress, especially on the field mentally and physically, and showing that you are supporting them no matter what is reassurance,” Paez said. “It really does mean a lot and it brings the high school more together.” 

However, other sports don’t seem to receive the same crowd attendance. All of the games except football this season have no attendance fee, which includes boys water polo, girls tennis, volleyball, girls golf, and boys and girls cross country. Yet, many of these sports are less popularly attended.

Particularly for tennis, most spectators are parents even though the games are open to all students afterschool. A huge reason why, in my experience watching tennis games, is the weather and spectator conditions. Without as many bleachers as other places on campus and games usually being in the afternoon, it often gets too hot for most to stay the entirety of the game. 

Taking the effort to improve this setting will help to gain more crowd interaction and comfortability – sparking more positivity towards the players and increasing school spirit with the option of watching a tennis game.

“Some people like spectators to go cheer them on because then they feel like they have a responsibility to do well and put on a good show for the audience,” doubles one player senior Melody Lin said. “Tennis is a mind game at times so the better the morale you have going into the game, the better your performance is going to be.” 

Many people may not understand how water polo, volleyball, tennis, golf, or cross country work, and therefore are not sure of how enjoyable the game is. However, what better place is there to learn how they work than the actual game? Putting in a little more effort to be present at games will not only show equal appreciation for our sports teams, but also contribute to a social environment. 

“I know what it’s like to play a sport where not a lot of people show up,” water polo set point junior Andres Sanchez said. “[Water polo] is a fun sport to watch, it’s a really physical sport. If [the crowd is] cheering us on, it’s going to make us better. I feel like it will help us.” 

Being part of the crowd is also being part of our school community. Siblings, parents, and friends alike can be brought together by being more open-minded about all of the exciting sports that take place here on campus. 

“Support is very important, it’s the backbone. Fans coming in to support friends and what they like to do, it mentally helps them.” Volleyball coach Charles Tran said. “When sports succeed, the school succeeds and it helps build the community.”