Walking through the halls of RCHS, one may hear fellow students wishing there was a larger selection of sports. Although the high school has many options for students to pick from, many wish there were more. Due to the Title IX federal laws in place, which prohibits discrimination on the basis of gender in education and athletic programs within any public school, the high school must have an equal balance of boys’ and girls’ sports.

Since the school offers girls’ volleyball, many have wished that we add a boys’ volleyball team. From a poll of 111 students at Rockbridge, 63 people want this sport at the school. This would be a Virginia High School League alternative option for male students who would not play football, golf, and cross country in the fall. 

Thomas Armstrong is a student-athlete and is the catcher for the Varsity baseball team. 

“I would fully commit and join a guy’s volleyball team if we had one. I love playing at the beach with friends and wish we had an organized team here,” said Armstrong.

Our school has many of the VHSL sports offered, but the other VHSL sports that we do not have that could be offered at the high school are field hockey, diving team, and gymnastics. Both field hockey and gymnastics had 38 people vote in favor of these sports at the high school. 

Soren Gillespie is a junior who has shown interest in a field hockey team coming to Rockbridge.

“It would be a great opportunity for students, especially with the Southern Virginia University and Washington and Lee resources and coaches,” said Gillespie.

Although ice hockey is not a VHSL sport, it was shockingly one of the sports most desired to come to RCHS besides boys’ volleyball. 

Junior Daniel Grimm, a student-athlete also known as “dirty thirty” was excited when he heard about the hypothetical possibility of a hockey team coming.

“I would love to be on a hockey team if we had one. I am not doing anything else during the winter and feel like I’d enjoy the contact in the sport. I also like hitting people and pucks,” said Grimm.

If one wanted a new team to come to the high school, they would have to discuss this with the Athletic Director and administration. When there is a noticeable drive for this to become an organized team, it would be funded by the school to provide proper equipment and coaching staff. First, it would become a club sport, and if it is a VHSL sport then it will become an approved VHSL sport. Athletic director Adam Haynes shares some of his insight into what it may take to have a sport come to RHCS.

“The sports that are growing in club size in Virginia are bass fishing and lacrosse. More and more schools are starting club teams for these sports. Although bass fishing isn’t a VHSL sport yet, I feel that soon it will be approved to be one,” said Haynes.

Like many other high schools, our lacrosse team was once a club team, and once it became a developed sport across the state, we became a VHSL team. So what sport would you like to see here in Rockbridge and at other schools across Virginia: Bass fishing, gymnastics, field hockey, diving team, or even a sport not yet on the VHSL registry? If it has large enough interest and goes through the proper steps, almost any sport can come to the high school.