The girl’s volleyball team recently won the 2021 York-Adams Interscholastic Athletic Association (YAIAA) Sportsmanship Award.

Sophomore Kayla Lang defines sportsmanship as “the fair and generous treatment of others; not only having respect for your team, but also for your opponent. Just because we are against each other does not mean we need to be disrespectful to each other.”      

When asked how she deals with poor sportsmanship from opposing teams, Lang says that she generally tries to ignore it, and simply focus on being the best teammate she can be. “Sportsmanship is highly valued because that’s what coaches and people look for. You can be an all-star but if you are a poor sport it makes you look like not only a bad player but a bad teammate,” said Lang regarding the importance of sportsmanship.

Sportsmanship should be shown everywhere. Lang said, “An example of sportsmanship is waving to each other at the end of the game. I don’t care how bad someone loses or wins. Showing respect to the other team for bringing their effort to make them and yourself better is very important.”

Sportsmanship is important because it shows who you are personally and it contributes to how you have to be treated.