Who has the best student section in Butler County? Vote for your favorite now!
During high school sports games in Butler County, the competition isn’t exclusive to the field. It erupts in the bleachers, too.
Chants collide and school colors clash as their squads go up against the opponent. Every school claims to have the best student section — the one that yells the loudest, brings the most passion and is the most loyal. But who really owns that title?
Below is a case for each. Then decide for yourself here. Voting closes 9 a.m. Friday.
What sets Butler apart from the rest is pretty simple. Opposing players have to deal with friendly insults — if there are such a thing.
“We have pretty good chirps, and it’s kinda funny most of the time,” Stone Spack said. “It’s all fun, it’s never personal. We’ll chirp a player if they’re close. ... When we chirp somebody, it just comes to mind, comes natural.”
Despite having a busy schedule with school and playing for the Yellowjackets’ WPIAL championship-winning girls soccer team, Nia DiSanti attended every football game this season.
“We always show out, we always dress the theme and we’re always getting loud, no matter,” DiSanti said. “If we’re up or down, we cheer on our school and have school spirit.”
“The atmosphere is very fun, it’s very social,” DiSanti continued. “Everybody gets along. There’s never (any) drama. It’s just fun to be able to cheer on your friends that you’ve been growing up with your whole life.”
Karns City has a tight-knit community. The familiarity lends itself to a supportive bunch.
“I think we’re just super passionate for our teams,” Robinson said. “We’re always wanting to get them to win. ... All of the people cheering in the student section know each other really well, and we know all the athletes really well, so we’re able to cheer for them pretty easily.”
Robinson and fellow student section co-leader Colton Christie have focused on adding new, creative chants to the group’s repertoire.
“We’ve tried to add a couple new, school-exclusive ones this year that’ll hopefully stick,” Robinson said. “We get together all week in school and we come up with some new things.”
If you ask Koen Sundie, there aren’t many student bodies that travel as well as Knoch’s. That was on display when the Knights’ boys hoops team hit the road to play North Catholic earlier this season.
“For an away game, that’s 30 minutes from our school, and we probably had 50 kids there,” Sundie said. “At an away game, which is kinda very impressive. We travel well.”
Sundie and other seniors carpool and communicate through group chats, including one that has as many as 25 people.
Along with three other classmates, Joey Santa runs the Planets’ Barstool social media accounts, helping organize the student body’s support for sports teams. It also leads to some wacky gimmicks.
“Some baseball teams do ‘The Freeze’ versus a fan,” Santa said, referencing the mid-game race in the outfield during Atlanta Braves games. “We did that a little bit with a kid dressed up as Spider-Man (racing) another kid in the student section.”
When the Warriors take the field or court, there’s not much else going on in the nearby area. Everyone makes their way to the high school.
“There might not be as many people as some of the bigger schools in Butler County, but you’re getting everybody there on pretty much every night,” Kameron Hershey said. “There’s definitely not a lot to do up here ... but I love to go watch my friends play.”
As a private school, North Catholic brings in a lot of students from different areas, but they all have school spirit in common.
“All the grade levels, they have a really good relationship with each other, just because it’s a small school,” Gabe Martins said. “The upperclassmen do a good job of working with the underclassmen. ... That promotes a good environment.”
Friendships and connections are formed in social settings such as lunch, study halls and elective classes.
Seneca Valley’s student section typically has a student who wears a crown, and they travel well, including to the boys hockey team’s PIHL and state championships last season.
Slippery Rock shows its unity in one distinct way during hoops games.
“We have our clap. We have our count off for our free throws, which I think is unique,” Jacob Reich said. “I don’t really know of any other student sections that have been doing that.”
When the official hands the ball to a Rockets player, Reich yells out to begin a countdown. After a synchronous clap, the group rubs their hands together.
“It’s like a little good luck charm,” Reich said. “(It) kind of gives a motivation, how the community backs our team and kind of a sense of unity.”
