High school sports offer the best game in town





There are few things in life better than a good seat at a major sporting event.

Whether the seat is courtside, right behind home plate or on the 50-yard line, fans appreciate being in the middle of the action.

But ticket holders at professional games know those seats don’t come cheaply. A courtside seat to the Lakers? Forget it. You’d have to take out a second mortgage on your house.

Most of us are content with the view from the couch.

Local sports are a different ball game, however. At Agoura, Calabasas and Oak Park high schools, some of the most entertaining contests can be seen for free. And if you have to pay, it won’t be much. High school sports offer the best-bang-for-your-buck family entertainment you’ll find anywhere.

Throughout the week, high school gyms across the Conejo and Las Virgenes valleys come alive with the hard-fought intensity of boys’ and girls’ basketball games.

Finding a seat is rarely a problem, and the price of a ticket is less than the cost of a soda at Staples Center. Better yet, the money goes right back into the school’s athletic programs to make sure players have a uniform to wear, a bus to ride and a field to play on year after year.

If basketball is not your sport, try catching a soccer game. Some of the most talented players in the state compete on the local high school pitches. Wrestling and girls’ water polo—perhaps two of the most demanding high school sports—are also in full swing this winter.

Okay, it’s not the World Cup or the NCAA basketball tournament, and you won’t see slam dunks, fireworks and Laker Girls, but high school sports are
fun and the atmosphere can be electric and the cost affordable. These young men and women give their hearts and souls to the games they love. They play for school pride and oldfashioned hometown bragging rights.

So the next time you’re feeling cheated that you won’t be sitting next to Jack Nicholson or rubbing elbows with Tommy Lasorda, remember that the thrill of victory and the agony of defeat plays out on the high school fields, too.

A good high school game is something you can’t put a price tag on. So please, support your local team today.


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