by Yo Hwan Cha, staff reporter

The PSAL, or the Public Schools Athletic League, is home to many high school sports teams. High school sports teams participate with PSAL and compete against other high schools in their division. Unlike many other schools, this school does not have any PSAL affiliated sports teams, and so students have to play for the Francis Lewis athletic teams.

“I think that it would be a lot more convenient for many people to have an athletic team that is directly associated with our school,” senior Nikitas Troumouhis said.

There are many questions as to why there are no athletic team that are involved with PSAL, and many of these questions go unanswered.

“It’ll be nice if we can find out why there is no athletic team in our school, because I feel like the kids in our school are pretty athletic and will do pretty well in the PSAL, so why not have an athletic team? Plus if we do know the reasons of why we don’t have a team, we can help out the school in trying to create and start an athletic team,” senior Dean Mastoras adds.

An athletic team can influence a student to do better in school, because they have to be passing all of their classes to remain on the team, and it can also show them a sense of responsibility and leadership.

“I am on the Francis Lewis soccer team, and it actually helps me keep my grades up in my classes. My love of soccer motivates me to do better in school, so that I can remain on the team,” Sophomore Tommy Mastoras said.

Students, like Tommy Mastoras, are willing to do better in the classroom if they were involved in an athletic team.

“I honestly think that if I were to be an a school’s athletic team, it would push me to do better in the classroom, so I can remain on the team, and at the same time I will be doing something that I actually enjoy,” senior Peter Ikariou, said.

Having an athletic team that is directly associated with the school can also give students a feeling of school pride, which is what many students and the school needs.

“The students in this school are so dead, in my opinion. None of the kids here actually like the school and enjoy it here. Most kids don’t want to associate themselves with the school, but I think that if there was a school team that was directly associated with [this school], and we actually did well in the league, that students will show some type of school pride,” senior Steve Zouvelos said.

“I also think that we will do pretty well in the league, because we do have some kids that play for Francis Lewis, and there are other students that don’t participate with Francis Lewis, that are pretty good at what they do,” senior Steve Zouvelos adds.

Creating an athletic team, that is directly associated with the school, is very difficult. It is a long procedure and needs the cooperation and involvement of many students. However, once there are athletic teams established, there will definitely be a change of energy in the school. Creating these teams will be well worth all of the wait and hard-work put into making the teams.