At Schreiber, student athletes put immense amounts of time and effort into their athletic activities.  No matter the sport, all student athletes are unified by the countless hours they spend practicing and competing after school and on weekends. 

This is why students at Schreiber have decided that athletes should get more public recognition, especially through social media, which is the most efficient way to reach the majority of the student body.

In order to publicize Schreiber’s athletic events, juniors Louis Blakeman, Adam Jackman, and Christopher Spina created an Instagram account dedicated to updating Schreiber students and others interested about sports: @portvikings.

“Initially, we started it because we cover sports on the radio,” said Jackson.  “We wanted to do something more because a lot of people don’t listen to the radio.  Instagram is the best way to publicize [sports] since most of the student body is on Instagram.” 

The account began by only documenting the boys varsity basketball team.  However, as it gained popularity, the owners chose to expand its base.  This season, the Instagram account is documenting both girls and boys varsity Lacrosse.  The sports were decided by a public vote on the Instagram account.

“It’s cool to catch up on my friends and see how the other teams at my school’s seasons are going,” said junior Maddy Feigin.  “A lot of my friends follow the page, too, especially the ones that play sports.  I also do sports, and this account really gives athletes well-deserved recognition, too.”

Many students voice similar opinions, hoping to stay informed about Schreiber sports.  The Instagram account, although fairly new, has skyrocketed in popularity and has already gained hundreds of followers.

“We never thought we would have over 450 followers now,” said Spina.  “We just wanted to bring more publicity to the basketball team and other sports teams.  We thought it would be a good idea to provide scores and insight to Schreiber students.”

The Instagram account regularly updates about a fourth of the student body on Schreiber sports.  The account frequently posts line-ups, game schedules, and updates on key varsity players, giving student athletes some well-deserved recognition for their talent and effort.

The @portvikings account isn’t the only thing contributing to an increase in school athletic spirit. This fall, the varsity football team began the Vikings Rising movement, which makes the student body more involved in and excited about sports. As a result of the recent publicity, this year’s football and basketball games were packed with students. 

“I think over the past year with the whole Vikings Rising thing, many students have gotten more into [sports],” said Jackman.  “It’s good to have an account for students to gravitate toward to stay involved in sports.”

The rise in school spirit among Schreiber students, coupled with the easy accessibility social media provides to the student body, has allowed the @portvikings Instagram to thrive and grow.

However, one problem that some students and parents have with this new account is that it only focuses on one sport per season.  This season, the account is only reporting on lacrosse.

“We decided to only do lacrosse because we put it to a vote, and a lot of people wanted us to only cover lacrosse,” said Jackman.

That being said, the vote occurred when the account was smaller.  It was only up for an hour and only available to those who followed the account or went out of their ways to look up the account.

“There are dedicated athletes across all sports.  They deserve coverage as well,” said junior Sophie Gindi.

In addition, all the accounts owners are juniors at Schreiber.  When they graduate, it remains in question what will happen to the account afterwards.

“We will probably give the account to other kids who do the radio show… but we’re not completely sure yet,” said Spina.  

The future of @portvikings remains uncertain, but as of right now, it is growing at a rapid rate.  With over 450 followers, the account helps Schreiber students and athletes stay updated on the latest sports coverage.