LHS Wildcats : 'More Than a Season'

On Wednesday, January 27th, IHSA will be holding their most important meeting since the middle of March 2020: deciding which IHSA sports will be able to start, continue, and finish their season. Knowing this information, students that attend Libertyville High School wanted more than ever for their voices to be heard.

Prior to the IHSA specialty meeting, Seniors at LHS spread the word of a socially distant and peaceful march through social media that was planned to be held on Tuesday, January 26th at 4:00. It was to begin at Cook Park in downtown Libertyville and end at Libertyville High School. All who were planning on attending were told to be respectful, wear a mask, and stay socially distant. Their main goal was to have their voices heard in unity for the opportunity to play their sport.

Beckett Abington, the main coordinator of this march, is a Senior at Libertyville High School. When asked what pushed him to put this together, he replied, "My buddies and I wanted to allow others to join us in order to show our pride for our game. People use their sports, clubs, and organizations to branch out and discover who they want to be. We have so much respect for the IHSA, and we want them to keep us in mind. It's more than a season," Abington continued to explain that "not having senior, junior, or even sophomore playing time for all LHS sports, can put a toll on the [player's] future."

The turn out was exactly what the athletes wanted, possibly even better. While maintaining the numbers to a low limit, students from all grades at Libertyville High School showed up at Cook Park. All who came were dressed in Wildcat gear, brought signs and bells for enthusiasm, and were wearing masks. Throughout the entire gathering, the athletes kept an eye on their distance from one another while documenting the experience on their devices in order to further spread the word.

The athletes started their march and made their way down Brainard Avenue towards their high school while walking socially distanced from one another on the sidewalks. Citizens of Libertyville would drive by the march, honking in support. As they were walking, the athletes would be chanting classic Wildcat cheers such as "I believe that we will win" as well as shouting "Let us play!" and "It's more than a season."

When they arrived at the high school, athletes lined up socially distant from one another in front of their football field. They then went on to making a socially distant "Wildcat Circle" and completed the well-known "Cat-Jacks" that are used as a warm up routine in LHS sports. Anyone who was there could easily see the pure joy this brought to all who were involved.

"We just wanted to say thank you. Thank you to the healthcare workers, doctors, teachers, coaches, parents, everyone. Without you, we wouldn't even have the slightest opportunity that we may have coming up for us," senior football and baseball player Dillon McDonald shares, "to the IHSA decision-makers, we wanted our opinion to be heard, and now we know it has been. Go Cats."

The phrase "more than a season" was used repetitively that afternoon, but what exactly does it mean? Captains of the LHS Football team share their outlooks:

"Football is a family. Sports help develop character on and off the field." -Beckett Abington

"This is our town and this is our team. Football is family!" - Adam Pressley

"A unique opportunity to compete and grow with my family of Wildcats through every LHS sport" -Dillon McDonald

"The work we have put in, the obstacles in our way, we owe it to ourselves to play for our community" -Trace Batesky

"Sports create lifelong relationships, they serve as an outlet for kids to forget about outside struggles, and help earn athletic scholarships in order to attend college for many" -Joseph Neal

"Sports are more than just a game to us. They are what makes us better people and gives us the ability to form a never-ending comradeship." -Blake Ellingson

These six leading individuals are speaking on behalf of not only themselves but for all students who are involved in sports at Libertyville High School. The march that was peacefully demonstrated downtown Libertyville this past week gave the players at LHS the opportunity they have been aiming for, to show IHSA that "it's more than a season".