Raider athletes are noticing a rise in school spirit this year.
Attendance at athletic events has increased, student sections have grown louder and become organized, and social media has played a role in uniting the school community.
The daily announcements now mention all home and away games, encouraging students to attend.The Shaker Athletics Instagram account posts videos of players encouraging fans to show up for home games.
New accounts like “shakersburner,” “shakeralmostfriday” and “shakerspirit” have become hubs for student engagement, posting every week. Each page offers a different angle towards school pride, but together they’ve helped create a stronger sense of identity among Shaker students.
Sophomore hockey player Isaac Luzar is happy with the recent use of social media. “I think using social media to help promote games has not only helped, but we’ve used it more this year than we did last year and we can see the difference,” he said.
Junior Colin Arth said he has noticed the difference. “Every time there’s a big game, I constantly hear people talking about it in class or in the hallways,” he said.
Students now fill their section with coordinated outfits. On Oct. 22, nearly 50 students showed up on a Wednesday night to cheer on the men’s soccer team at their home playoff game despite cold and rainy weather. “People were talking about and promoting it all day, and there ended up being a big turnout despite the bad weather, which I don’t think would’ve happened the past two years I’ve been here,” Arth said.
Senior Sloan Gurney, the men’s soccer manager, said that there are more people talking about the games at school, “which leads to more people coming to them.”
The Raiders won the game in overtime.
Luzar said he is impressed with student turnout this year. “It felt really good to see other students come support the hockey team for a scrimmage. Not even a real game and we still had fans,” he said.
“From personal experience I think having your peers rally behind you gives you a sense of confidence and helps you perform to your best ability,” Arth said.
Said Luzar, “I think it’s only going to get better and better throughout the year.”
