The ball swooshes into the net, and cheers erupt from the team. The team members rush toward their teammate at the three-point line, congratulating their teammate on an awesome shot. With big smiles, the team gets ready for the next play in their game in the Intramural Basketball Association (IMBA) at State High.
IMBA is an intramural sport where students create their own basketball teams, with a minimum of eight players and a maximum of 14, according to an email Kelly Aston, the Student Activities/Athletic Manager of SCASD district, sent out on Nov. 7. Each team has a team captain and a team name. The season is about 3 months long, and the teams can be girls and boys combined.
“It’s something that you can incorporate physical health into hanging out with your friends…it just is really fun,” junior Cate Craig said.
There are no official practices, so the players practice on their own for the games. IMBA is a State High exclusive sport, so it’s State High versus State High. The games will be held in the South Gym (G227) after school.
For the teams competing in the games, as of Tuesday, Nov. 17, there were already 18 teams registered, and the maximum number of teams is 20. There are at least 144 players registered so far.
Aston said that she hopes they will be able to start the season off in the first or second week of December and end it just before students are let out for spring break.
“I just think it’s a great opportunity, you know, to get out there and get to know other students in the school that you might not normally interact with, and a great opportunity to participate in something that is not a formal sport that gives you that,” Aston said.
As well as Aston, there are two student commissioners who help lead the sport, seniors Dylan Briggs and Jack Snyder. They were responsible for handing out the permission slips and the rules and regulations to the team captains. Additionally, the two commissioners schedule the games, attend every game, email refs and more.
“It’s just really fun to be at all the games, and see all the work that we put in, like making the schedule and everything…Me and Dylan just really enjoy being there, being part of the environment,” co-commissioner Jack Snyder said.
The team captains were responsible for handing out the permission slips they received to their team, and making sure their whole team filled out a permission slip. The slips were due Nov. 21. The captains are also responsible for making sure their team knows the rules of basketball and IMBA.
Snyder, when asked what he would tell someone who is considering joining IMBA, said, “I would say definitely do it…By no means do you have to be good, just find some friends, get out there, have fun…It’s active. It’s good for you.”
Snyder also shared how IMBA is only one to two times a week, so it’s not a big time commitment for the students. “It’s just a lot of fun, and I would definitely suggest it to someone who’s looking to, like, join or get into something,” Snyder said.
Editor’s Note: Jack Snyder is a Lions’ Digest contributor. He did not review this article prior to publication.
