I think we can all agree Covid took a big toll on our lives. It took away school, our social lives and sports, for a large period of time. Finally, things are starting to get back to normal this year, especially for the athletes of Ripon High.

 As you may or may not know, last year there were many restrictions for sports that had to be followed. Whether it was a shortened season, pushed back season, wearing masks while playing, a limited amount of spectators, or covid tests once a week, they all affected our athletes and the sports they played. 

Although sports still have some restrictions to work around this year, at least there are not as many as last year. Compared to last year many athletes would argue that this year is better. 

“Even though we have to wear masks inside, I like this year’s season way more than last year, because we get to do most things in person and there is more social interaction,” says sophomore cheerleader Maya Clayton.

The seasons are different this year because, now, since everyone is back in person they aren’t pushed back. They are back to normal times and they aren’t shortened. This year they are also allowing spectators to watch. For many people, it is important to go to the games and support our classmates and unfortunately, we couldn’t do that last year. One of the most popular sports to watch is the Friday night football games, and for many people, last week was the first game they attended because the sophomores didn’t get to attend games as freshmen due to the spectator restrictions. You could tell that many people missed watching the games and everyone had a fun time together.

“This year has still been a struggle because Covid is still upon us. We still have to deal with some restrictions, such as losing our players for a while because they can’t do the extracurricular activities, such as football, but overall it’s fun to be back out there with my teammates and hopefully, we have a good rest of the season,” says sophomore quarterback, Ty Herrin.

A new restriction is that a student who has supposedly been around another student with Covid will be sent home. They can eventually test negative and come back to school, but they still aren’t allowed to participate in extracurricular activities, such as sports. This is bad for athletes because they can miss a lot of their season being quarantined. This ends up affecting the whole team because they won’t have certain players and will have to fill their positions. 

“With sports back on again, we get to be able to be active and play against other schools. Everything feels normal when I’m playing my sport,” says Clayton.

Whether it’s an athlete, coach or someone who just enjoys watching, many people are glad they get to enjoy sports again.