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WOODBURN, Ind. – The Woodlan girls basketball has been recognized for their exemplary sportsmanship through awarding of IHSAA Sportsmanship pins.
After a recent game between Woodlan and Eastside, one of the officials wrote an exemplary behavior report to the IHSAA, complimenting both the Lady Warriors and the Lady Blazers on their treatment of the opposing players, the referees and each other.
The IHSAA notified the schools of the praise, and Woodlan officials handed out the pins, provided to its varsity girls player and Cobb.
“There’s more to (basketball) than wins and losses,” Cobb says. “We try to plan for life. Having sportsmanship and showing respect for people gets you a long way in life”
The small pins include the words Integrity, Character and Respect as well as the hashtag #FaceOfSportsmanship, which is the IHSAA’s new social media campaign to promote fair play, respect and encouragement for athletes, coaches and spectators at all of the state’s high school athletic events. The IHSAA provides each member school with the sportsmanship pins at the beginning of the school year; the pins are handed out to student-athletes the school seems deserving of the honor. The Lady Warriors are the first to receive the pins at Woodlan.
“I think it defines our team pretty well,” senior forward Madi Koos says. “We’ve always looked at sportsmanship as being a key factor in winning games.” Woodlan finds itself at 8-3 so far this season.
Koos hopes the recognition inspires fellow Woodlan classmates as well asstudent-athletes from other schools.
The players have agreed to wear their pins on their letter jackets, as a signal of their accomplishment and the bond
“We have a junior class that has played together since they were in 5th grade,” Cobb adds. “It makes for a close-knit team.”
Woodlan is one of 25 local high schools that partners with Parkview Sports Medicine for athletic training and other medical services for Warrior student-athletes.