Changes in athletics have led to improvements in sport in LL and beyond | High School Athletics

While running, jumping and throwing remain the focus of athletics, the 50 years of the sport in the Lancaster-Lebanon League have been one of change.

For starters, the measurements.

Bill Bowers somewhat coached the girls’ teams at Hempfield High School from 1976 to 2018. When he first started coaching, running events were measured in yards. In 1979 they were measured in meters.

Some of the events for girls have also changed. The 80 hurdles became the 100. The sprint medley relay was eliminated and replaced with the 3,200 relay. The softball pitch disappeared when the girls started throwing the javelin like the boys.

Bowers credited Title IX – which itself celebrates its 50th anniversary in June – with a big role in improving girls’ opportunities

“When I started coaching girls, we had me and one other person,” he said. “Title IX helped us get a third coach. Also, there are more opportunities for girls to get scholarships and recognition that they didn’t have before.”

league growth

Bowers, a McCaskey and Millersville graduate student who still lives in Lancaster, said team results were not tabulated at the championship meeting for the first two years of the league.

“Whoever won the section was the league champion,” said Bowers. “If there were enough nearby schools to create two stages, stage winners would race against each other to determine the league champions.”

The league has grown since its original days. Reviewing his records, Bowers said the very first LL championship meeting had 10 teams: Garden Spot, Manheim Central, Elizabethtown, Manheim Township, Hempfield, Conestoga Valley, Donegal, Lancaster Catholic, McCaskey and Solanco.

Today 23 schools are part of the LL-Bahnliga. Many athletes have benefited from this growth over the years.

It was important for the LL and its members that as many athletes as possible take part in the competitions.

It’s something Ted Fitzgerald, a Manheim Township resident who has led both track and field and swimming for 51 years, has noticed.

“I think the league offers great opportunities in many sports and I see them trying to expand in football,” he said. “We seem to be adding schools and programs every year. I think it’s great to include more kids outside of the classroom with different abilities. I really do.”

Terry Engleman started the Ephrata Track program in 1962 and served as the Mounts’ coach during and after his 35-year career. He likes the changes within the league.

“They’re divided by size, so the smaller schools have a chance to compete,” he said. “That’s part of what the Lancaster-Lebanon League is about. It pits the big schools against themselves, the middle schools against others of that size.”

The performances improve over the years

Every aspect of the sport has steadily increased, from the conditions to the training, and it shows in times, elevations and distances.

“The tracks themselves are better. The only dirt track I can think of is at Wheatland Middle School and it’s still in use,” said Engleman of Ephrata. “There weren’t that many invitationals in the ’70s and ’80s. We went to a Saturday meeting, so the kids ran three times a week. Physiologically it is better to train.

“Now they run once a week and train for four or five days, then maybe they go to a Saturday competition, which increases their level of performance. You’re not going to get the most out of an athlete in a doubles meeting (if he’s running three events). You go to a Shippensburg Invitational and you take your kid to the best event or maybe the top two events.”

“There were dramatic changes in competition, in the records set and what the kids could achieve with improvements in training,” Fitzgerald agreed. “It’s come a long way.”

Former Ephrata athlete and athletic director Merv Witmer said the camaraderie between the athletes has increased.

“Track people are special,” he said. “Often they cheer each other on. In many other sports, that’s not exactly what you do.

“We always had it; The difference today is that children have a lot more interaction with each other. I was an Ephrata kid, I didn’t have much exposure to McCaskey kids or E-Town kids.

“Through all the social media and the way things are going, everyone knows everyone now. They often train together even in the off-season. These are things that didn’t exist before.”

But one thing hasn’t changed: the athlete’s mentality has made the sport something special for everyone involved.

“Athletics is a sport that anyone can do. You may not be the best, but you can do it,” said Witmer, also from Ephrata. “What always makes me happy is when I meet a kid and I say, ‘How did you do?’ They will respond with “I had my PR today”. That’s all she cares about. They didn’t win, they didn’t come second or third, but they had their PR. It’s a really positive sport.”

Success! An email has been sent with a link to confirm the list subscription.

Mistake! An error occurred while processing your request.