New UIL sports unlikely to be added soon

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Provided by Austin Wiedner

Sophomore Austin Widner plays lacrosse for the Frisco Lacrosse team.

From golf to wrestling, there are 13 UIL sports. For years there has been debate as to what should be the next sports added, with the UIL last studying proposals in 2016 concerning two sports to add: water polo and/or lacrosse.

Neither sport was added, but UIL deputy director Jamey Harrison said one is closer to happening than the other one is.

“I think it’s not a matter of if, it’s a matter of when,” Harrison said in a DallasNews.com article. “Typically, while there is no set rule for it, the rule of thumb is when you get a majority of schools in a conference participating in an event, it’s time to add that event. Water polo is certainly getting very very close.”

New sports typically start in the highest classification but none have been added since 1999. Despite this, freshman Max Nield likes the idea of water polo being added.

“I think it’d [water polo] be a good sport to add it’s very competitive and it’s very active,” Nield said. “It’s definitely one of the best swimming sports. It’d be a great addition to the UIL sports.”

UIL sent out surveys to schools throughout Texas with 80 percent of respondents against the idea of adding lacrosse. But given the current financial constraints facing the school district, adding either sport in the near future could be difficult.

“It’d be pretty tough to try to justify adding two more sports with at least one more coach if not more than that,” campus athletic director Christopher Burtch said. “So I don’t think it makes sense financially. We just had to cut a coach from wrestling and football and so it just doesn’t make sense staffing wise and financially.

Burtch appreciates what both sports could offer, but says now is probably not the best time to add any sports.

“As far as lacrosse and water polo being great sports yeah I think they’re probably great sports,” Burtch said. “I think that any time kids can stay active and do something that they enjoy that you’re better off. I think it’d be great to have activities that kids are involved in I just don’t think the timing is right right now for Frisco ISD.”

 

Updated: This story was updated on May 25 to reflect the proper spelling of Austin Widner in the caption for the featured image picture. Widney was incorrectly spelled as Wiedner.