While many popular fashion trends tend to rise and fall, a timeless classic has always been sporting your school’s attire. Unfortunately, it can be hard to find the iconic blue and silver Rockbridge County merchandise. Unless you are involved in a sport, in which case the attire practically falls in your lap, there are very few places to actually get legitimate “merch”.
Senior Sydney Hartman shares where she gets her Wildcat attire and why it is the best.
“I think the best place to find Wildcat merch would be Goodwill. I’ll be honest though, I don’t tend to see it a lot. Maybe it’s because I’m not usually at sporting events, or when I am there I’m busy, but I think I’ve gotten all of my merch through events such as freshman open house, NHS, or band,” said Hartman.
Junior Myranda Deacon elaborates on why she thinks Walmart is the best place to buy merchandise.
“Walmart is the best place for purchasing wildcat attire. There are different selections such as sweatshirts, sweatpants, long sleeve and short sleeve shirts,” said Deacon
One great resource RCHS has for buying merchandise is BSN sports. BSN sports is the platform Rockbridge County uses to distribute team uniforms and sports related items.
Athletic assistant, Travis Rogers, shares some more information.
“Rockbridge athletics has a partnership with BSN to be the exclusive supplier of Under Armour team uniforms. Under that agreement we receive discounted prices on all sports items purchased for RCHS and we also receive earned credit back whenever items are purchased from BSN. Although BSN is based in Texas, we have a dedicated Virginia rep that serves RCHS. We have been with BSN for the last 20 years and we look forward to continuing our working relationship well into the future,” said Rogers.
BSN sports has been a great way for RCHS to expand on our school pride and include more items for students and parents to purchase.
Senior Deena Ludtke talks about why she prefers BSN sports to get her merchandise.
“When teams make stores it gives them the ability to make merchandise with any design on it. There are so many more options than you would find at Walmart or Goodwill,” said Ludtke.
Assistant principal Daniel Fallen shares his opinion.
“Personally, I really like the opportunity to purchase merchandise from groups within the school because the money raised goes back to our students. There are opportunities to purchase from various RCHS groups during the school day, by online ordering, as well as at various sporting events and activities,” said Fallen.
After conducting a schoolwide poll, the verdict turned out to be 28.6% of the students claiming Walmart was the best option to get Wildcat merch with sporting events coming in a close second with 27% of the votes, and school functions with 26.2%.
Price ranges for these items are comparable across the board. The average amount you would spend for merchandise at Walmart can be anywhere from $15-$30. These items mainly include sweatshirts and t-shirts. Kroger has the same prices as Walmart but does not have the same selection. Goodwill is all reused items and everything found there can be found anywhere from $2-$10. However, the downside is that some of these items may not be in the best condition due to being reused. Lastly, sporting events and school functions are normally included for students with whatever sports package you are paying for. When you buy these items at these school functions or games, they can range from $10-$20.
Even though many of the votes remained close, the overall opinion is that Lexington is not great at offering Wildcat merchandise to the public. With that said, it is hard to find something good, but Walmart seems to be the best option if you find yourself searching.
