Professional sports are some of the most statistically focused pastimes in the world, with entire television networks dedicated just to following the numbers. But this is becoming a reality with high schools sports as well. With multiple websites filled with stats of schools in entire areas and conferences, paid apps tracking progress, and the ability to see another team’s stats, student athletes are becoming more stat focused.
“I think as time goes on we’re getting more competitive as a whole,” junior swimmer Annika Hofer said.
As college sports continue to grow in popularity, recruiters are beginning to look at high school sports more and more. There are a growing number of websites and apps that track statistics and performance of specific athletes or entire teams. One such website, Maxpreps.com even goes in depth to the point of listing stat leaders, team rankings, and even a tab especially for recruiting that contains stats, footage, and photos of high school athletes, the same level of detail put into scouting players for professional teams.
“I think it’s helpful,” sophomore swimmer Alexis Poe said. “It pushes you. It makes you want it.”
For some athletes, knowing the performance allows them to prepare and plan. They set goals and push harder to reach them. However, for others it stresses them out and distracts them, weighing them down with the need for improvement.
“It is easier said than done not to look at stats and just take your best swing or make your best pitch,” varsity baseball coach Scott Davis said.
At the same time, Davis said that athletes have to keep in mind that the numbers they are stressing over may not be entirely accurate.
“There is human error in stats, especially in high school,” Davis said. “But for the most part they are relevant.”
Student athletes acknowledge becoming more and more focused on their own stats and performance. Some members of the swim team have gone as far as to pay for apps that allow them to track their times and the times of their opponents.
With the number of recruiters looking into high school sports and the coverage being given to the sports on local networks and streamed online, some athletes find a greater relevance of high school sports in the sports world is becoming more and more clear.
“I think it can help us prepare,” sophomore football player Andy Chen said. “Also I think there could be a psychological effect. They can intimidate opponents.”
The baseball team’s twitter account @PCBaseball will often post the statistic card from the most recent varsity game. The stat cards often contain every relevant stat for every player on the team. Even if individual coaches or teams don’t send their statistics out to the athletes, they have access through other websites and apps to evaluate their performance.
“If you’re really serious, you’ll get into the stats and figure out your goal,” Poe said. “It makes you want it, especially if you have a low-key rivalry.”
Also player rivalries are more common, according to students, as athletes focusing on the stats of another specific player. These rivalries don’t just extend to other schools’ teams, but to other athletes on the same team.