Sportsmanship

Parents/Guardians:

Now that fall practice is well-underway, I’m sure your students are gearing up to start the 2021 season. While they are practicing the “X’s and O’s” of the game, don’t forget to help them practice good sportsmanship and what is expected of players if an incident were to occur during a contest. Please remind your students of Rule I Section 18, Leaving the Bench Ejections that can be found in 2021-2022 AHSAA handbook:

Leaving The Bench Ejection: If players come off the bench onto the court or field and are ejected under National Federation rules, they will also be suspended for 20 percent of the team’s total number of regular season contests. If a player is ejected by the contest officials or by the AHSAA for unsportsmanlike conduct that causes other players to leave the bench or team box, the player(s) who initiated the altercation will be charged with the same penalty as those who left the bench under National Federation rules and will also be suspended for 20 percent of the team’s total number of regular season contests. Only the individuals from the school whose players came off the bench are affected by this rule.

Please continue to put sportsmanship at the forefront of all that you teach your student about athletics. Just like an offensive or defensive play, a plan for a flagrant unsportsmanlike incident must be practiced as well. Every coach, parent, and teacher has a role and responsibility, and every player has an obligation to his/her teammates to stay on the sideline. Coaches must continually talk to our teams about sportsmanship. Please take the time to also talk to your child about the AHSAA ejection policy and consequences for leaving the sideline.