As winter sports at JCHS are beginning to hold tryouts and cut athletes, the recreation basketball league offers an opportunity for any high school student, with any athletic ability, to have fun with other students. Six teams that consist of at least 8 members each have signed up for the league, making for a total well over 50. No tryouts are held, so anyone from high school can play, and the main goal this year seems to be to raise the spirits of students amidst the coronavirus. With three games played so far, the league has done just that as teams are already competing for a playoff spot with passion. This passion is only increased with the help of the league’s team management system. The teams are run by highschoolers as well, and this lack of adult shadowing gives the players exactly what every highschooler has wanted- a feeling of independence. This creative and bold management style is fueling this season and the players that get to participate in it.

The most admirable management of this league rests with the handling of a pandemic. The organizers of the league as well as town council members have set rules in order to keep the risk in this league to a minimum: masks must be worn at all times off of the court, no spectators are allowed to visit, absolutely no physical contact between players if it does not pertain to the game, and many other rules. Fortunately, the league being entirely made up of JCHS students makes spreading the virus even less likely, due to the additional guidelines that all JCHS students follow. 

Overall, this league is shaping up to be a highly beneficial activity in boosting student morale as well as giving all students of all athletic skills the ability to participate in sports, as well as give them a feeling of independence.