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SAC Sound-off: The State of Sportsmanship

April 17, 2012

This week, we asked our MHSAA Student Advisory Council -- made up of athletes representing nearly every sport the MHSAA sponsors -- if they've seen more or less sportsmanship during their high school sports careers. 

Here's what they told us:

Good news

“I’ve seen an increase, especially on our golf team because we’ve made that a priority on the team. Also, our school has made it a bigger focus.” – Kalamazoo Hackett junior Abby Radomsky

“An increase most definitely has been seen in the department of sportsmanship throughout my high school career. … Due to the rising levels of leadership and drive shown by students and coaches to display that life skills are taught through sports, not only the sport.” – New Buffalo senior Lena Madison

“I have seen an increase in sportsmanship because I think the whole idea of ‘Good sports are winners’ has had an impact on student athletes.” – Rogers City junior Evan Lamb

 “I have seen an increase overall, especially in my area. I have tried to spread the ideas of positive sportsmanship throughout the U.P., and many people have made the change. It’s pretty awesome.” – Rudyard senior Tyler Wilson

“I have seen an increase in sportsmanship because the idea of being a good sport has been brought to the forefront of high school sports by the MHSAA and the SAC.” – Portland St. Patrick junior Elle Lehman

For some right reasons

“As my teammates have matured, I think we have learned more about how crucial having good sportsmanship is to the success of the team.” – Pontiac Notre Dame Prep junior Carly Joseph

“I have seen an increase in sportsmanship because I feel more and more kids are playing for the love of the game and not only to win.” – Muskegon Catholic Central senior Alissa Jones

As athletes grow up

“I have seen an increase throughout my time in high school, mostly because of the increased maturity level and understanding of what is right.” – Grand Blanc senior Bailey Truesdell

“I have seen an increase in sportsmanship. I believe this is because there is an increase in the level of maturity.” – Vandercook Lake junior Thye Fischman

Somewhere in the middle

“I haven’t really noticed a change either way. I have never come in contact with very poor sportsmanship, which is probably why it seems to stay the same.” – Walled Lake Central junior Taylor Krumm

“I haven’t noticed an increase or a decrease in high school sports. I think high school athletes act the same as when I entered high school.” – Travis Clous, Benzie Central senior

Something to consider

“I think a decrease because as students grow up and become more comfortable playing, I think they forget what they have been taught and feel as though they are entitled. I know student that think the older they are, the more they know; so they talk back to coaches and players.” – Maria Buczkowski, Detroit Country Day senior

SAC Sound-off: It’s not about Perfection

April 25, 2012

“Practice makes perfect” is just one of the many phrases that inspire one to work harder toward the goal of obtaining perfection.

Though these words may be used to inspire perfection, that is not their true purpose. Perfection doesn’t exist, but the inspiration to reach for higher goals does.

My senior year opened my eyes up to the actualization that trying to be perfect was not what sports had been teaching me all along. What I was meant to take from them were the valuable lessons of dedication, drive, teamwork, and communicating skills.

High school sports are more than a tool for athletic development. They are a medium for creating mentally-strong people who can execute in difficult situations faced later in life. Not that one may perform perfectly in these hypothetical situations, but that one may be able to handle situations that require thinking outside of the box.

How great it would be for all student-athletes to know and realize these secrets – because for the ones that feel the pressure to be perfect, it may be a much-needed relief.

I have strived to be the best I can be, and I have achieved success by doing so. However, with that success came pressure to be perfect in an athletic sense.

My junior year I was named all-state in basketball and I won the MHSAA Division 4 discus championship. Negative comments from others during my senior year about my basketball games or field events in track used to make me feel insignificant and insecure. That was before I realized I have achieved great heights and I will continue to raise my pinnacle as long as I stay positive.

I will never be absolutely perfect; I’m only human, and the best anyone can do is try his or her hardest to never back down from a task at hand. 

High school athletics have molded me from a perfection-seeking mess to a confident, realistic, and optimistic person that finally realizes nothing I do in life is about perfection – it is about the climb of simply becoming a stronger person.

What I can strive for in the realm of perfection is a perfect attitude. The contagiousness of a good attitude will not only keep me optimistic, but it can influence others around me to pursue that positive mental toughness that is so often tested in sports.

Lena Madison, New Buffalo, senior

  • Sports: Volleyball, basketball, track and field
  • Non-sports activities: Student Government, Spanish Honors Society, National Honors Society, Special Olympics and Senior Olympics volunteer
  • Must-see TV: "Lost"
  • One shining moment: Winning the MHSAA Division 4 championship in discus last spring.
  • What's next: My plan for next year is to attend Notre Dame. I will major in pre-medicine and be on the track team.
  • My favorite part of game day is: ... right before every game, my team has a dance party. We get our nerves out of our systems by dancing them away!

PHOTO: Madison accepts her first-place medal at last season's Division 4 Track and Field Final. (Photo courtesy of Lena Madison.)