For the first time, this year’s 7th graders are stepping onto the more competitive sports field, bringing a ton of excitement, energy, positivity, and new challenges after not getting to participate in 6th grade. This has been a longstanding Westminster rule that 6th graders can not participate in cut-sports like soccer and volleyball. However, they can participate in a select group of non-cut sports: cross country, swimming, wrestling, and track.

Some 7th graders are ecstatic to finally get the chance to play. 7th graders Carr Warner and Leo Raab say it was not great not being able to have these sport opportunities, but now they are very happy and excited for this year’s participation in competitive sports. This year, as Warner and Raab say, 7th grade football is very fun, and the only thing they would change would be more practices. They love getting to tackle and hang out with friends. They are so glad that they have the opportunity to do competitive sports because they missed it in 6th grade.

But while 7th graders are happy, 6th graders are not. “I wished there were more teams made for 6th graders, especially volleyball,” 7th grader Kathryn McElroy says. 6th Watson Foust is even more direct: “It’s just not ok.” Obviously, the 6th graders absolutely hate this rule. 

7th graders now say the rule doesn’t bother them anymore because they are past that point in their middle school years. 

6th grade Grade Chair and Middle School wrestling coach David Gale explains that 6th graders should be able to participate in some sports, just not all. He thinks this because some sport teams already have two teams, like volleyball and soccer, and so it wouldn’t be fair to the 7th and 8th graders because if more people try out, they will have a less chance of making the team. He states, “I think it’s a good rule” also saying, “maybe we could get 6th graders involved in a way that they can participate in some sort of way.” 

7th grade Grade Chair Shazeen Porbandawala says that 6th graders don’t need the stress of school athletics. “6th grade is a big change; they probably don’t want to deal with the pressure of trying to make a team,” she says.