Sportsmanship at Lakewood High School
When it comes to sportsmanship, the Rangers of Lakewood High School have certainly
done an exceptional job doing it the right way. A simple emphasis on the little things has gone a
long way at Lakewood this past year. With a new Athletic Director came a new push for better
sportsmanship. The results of this push were very apparent throughout the three sports seasons.
Lakewood made it through the fall, winter, and spring seasons without a single ejection. The
previous year, there were seven. Our teams also enjoyed a variety of successes and
improvements in light of the sportsmanship movement.
Good sportsmanship is exemplified in many ways at Lakewood High School, and it
comes in a variety of forms. Anything from saying good luck to the other team during the coin
toss to cheering in a way that does not put down the other team, but rather encourages your own
goes a long way in the strive to be a good sportsman. But the strive at Lakewood is particularly
special. Lakewood’s recent push for better sportsmanship was represented through the formation
of the Sportsmanship Ethics and Integrity Committee. The committee engaged in a number of
activities to promote sportsmanship. Posters were created and put up and announcements were
made during school and athletic events to encourage good sportsmanship, to name a few things.
Pledges were signed by fans and athletes to promise that good sportsmanship would be
displayed. Fans were sometimes rewarded for fulfilling this pledge with Ranger themed knickknacks during athletic events in Lakewood. Shirts were issued with the RGRY acronym to show
to committee’s particular emphasis on “Respect the Game, Respect Yourself.”
Respect for the game is very important. It takes an athlete with good sportsmanship to
respect the rules of a game, and everything else that comes with it. That includes playing fair,
accepting the calls of the officials without arguing, and especially complying with what coaches
say. Coaches and officials are every bit as involved in the game as the athlete, and often the
biggest violations of sportsmanship come in the form of disrespecting adults like such. Thus,
respect for the game is a major issue that Lakewood Ranger student-athletes do an exceptional
job in exhibiting. Respecting yourself is equally important. It takes an inner mindset to “Respect
Yourself” in an ideal fashion. It can be difficult to train the mind to fulfill this attitude. But
Lakewood has shown how to do it the right way. This includes the ways the Ranger studentathletes encourage their teammates, quickly learn from and get over mistakes, and lose and win
in a very sportsmanlike manner. Lakewood coaches are predominantly adamant about the
manner in which we win and lose games. Emphasis is always put on calmly handling big wins,
and keeping composure after tough losses; to be summed up in simpler terms, “Win with class,
lose with class.” Ranger athletes are always reminded that they are representing more than
themselves – they are representing the school, the students, and the entire city. Lakewood is
represented very well with the fact that (as it was previously stated) there were no ejections in
any sport in either the fall, winter, or spring seasons.
At the core of good sportsmanship is the Golden Rule. In dealing with opponents and
even teammates and coaches, student-athletes should always treat others the way they would
want to be treated. Over time, unsportsmanlike conduct has become too common. Ridiculous
behavior helps athletes very little. While sometimes it makes one feel more intimidating, it more
often results in losses. In football for example, unsportsmanlike conduct is one of the most
detrimental of all penalties. Such conduct can result in players being removed from the field,
which again is detrimental to the rest of the team. And when those losses are combined with
more bad sportsmanship, such as a player blaming the referees or other teammates for their own
behavior, teams are further divided. Thus, the natural remedy to these situations is good
sportsmanship. While it may be difficult to accept reality, good sportsmanship makes losses and
even wins easier. For losses, swallowing your pride is always better for you than letting emotions
get the better of you – which can result in even worse consequences. For wins, good
sportsmanship is important because it helps one earn the respect of other teams. In turn,
sportsmanlike conduct will most likely be shown on both sides. Good sportsmanship spreads,
and makes the situation easier for all those involved. Often it is seen where teams or individuals
will try to win no matter what the cost. As a result of this attitude, good sportsmanship is often
lost along the way. The unfortunate thing is that there is no shame in losing, but lots of people do
not realize this. Lakewood student-athletes possess a high degree of integrity, and many can
testify that Ranger coaches are not concerned with winning at all costs. High school sports are
important in developing student-athletes into better people, which Lakewood coaches fully
realize and have done very well in implementing. The hard work put in to sports translates to the
real world, which is what it is all about. Certainly every Lakewood coach is very concerned with
how hard their players work. The willingness to work and development of student-athletes into
better people are very much involved in sportsmanship, as these attitudes correlate to how
student-athletes respect the game and themselves.
Good sportsmanship is not exactly the easiest thing to come by. But with Lakewood
Ranger student-athletes, it has become a custom. It takes character and a certain mentality to
display good sportsmanship. Lakewood High School has shown this year that it possesses that
character. The Ranger student-athletes showed that by doing the little things the right way, a lot
can be accomplished. Much of that applies to sportsmanship, and the benefits of this movement
can be clearly seen. The “Ranger Way” has brought success to Lakewood programs, and that
success is sure to be continued in the future.