One of the most exciting aspects of being an athlete is being able to showcase your talents in front of your school or friends and family during a game. Even with the short fall and spring seasons, MCPS athletes have yet to feel the rush of the crowd cheering during one of their games, due to the restrictions set in place because of COVID-19.

Not only has this been hard on the athletes, but also on parents who love to watch their kids play. Most sporting events, prior to COVID-19, had the bleachers filled with excited students and proud parents. it was also a way for the school to make money by charging viewers a fee to watch the games.

Boys’ soccer, girls’ soccer, football and field hockey were allowed to have two guests attend the final four games. The two visitors could be anyone, but they had to sign in on a Google form that stated which player they were coming to see. The limited number of fans was hard on the players, and it took away part of the overall high school sports experience. 

Before this, no parents nor fans were allowed in the stands to watch the games live. Instead, they could’ve watched the games on a streaming website for a $45 subscription or wait 72 hours to watch a recording of the game for free. 

Sage Gardener, a junior on varsity field hockey was relieved and excited to have her family back in the stands cheering her on. “It was nice having support from our parents,” Gardener said. 

Players utilized all of the open seats by switching out names if they found out another player didn’t have any visitors. This new policy allowed for the environment at the games to be much more game-like and spirited. 

All of the fall sports were allowed to hold senior nights for their senior players. Following tradition like any other year, parents were allowed to walk their kids across the field. For high school athletes, this is a special night and thanks to the new policies, seniors were allowed to enjoy it with their parents. 

Dera King, a junior on varsity girls’ soccer, was one of the students who was excited to have her parents in the stands again. “I think it helped us do better in our games because the audience gave us more lively energy,“ King said.

The spring season has started with the new policy in place so fans will be able to attend lacrosse, track, cross country, tennis and baseball games as long as they fill out the Google form. Each player is limited to two visitors.