Pennridge Unified Sports Team Braves through Bocce Championship Game

Pennridge High School hosted the Bucks County Unified Bocce Championship game on March 2, 2022, to see which school would advance into the state competition. Central Bucks East, Archbishop Wood, Pennsbury High School, William Tennent High School, Palisades, and of course Pennridge, were all in attendance to compete. These bocce teams are a part of the Special Olympics Interscholastic Unified Sports program which is supported by the Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association as well as the Bureau of Special Education; providing 91 schools in Pennsylvania with integrative and supportive sports teams.

Hours before the big championship game, the Pennridge Coed Unified Bocce Team paraded the halls, allowing peers to express their praise and support during, what is called, a torch run. “The torch run had the whole school supporting the team,” claims Pennridge senior Taryn McHugh, who is also a part of Pennridge’s Unified Bocce Team. Not only does the torch run encapsulate the true importance of having a unified sports program, but it also demonstrates Pennridge’s commitment to this team. In fact, in August 2020, Pennridge High School became the first high school in Bucks County to become a National Banner Unified Champion School. This is a title awarded by the Special Olympics to schools that demonstrate a commitment to the inclusion of students with disabilities, and for Pennridge, this especially pertains to their unified Bocce team. The importance of unified sports teams comes from their ability to provide students with disabilities an opportunity to be a part of a team and to be accepted by their school’s community. “(Unified Bocce) gives the unified athletes a chance to participate in a school sporting event and allows them to feel what it is like to have students, teachers, parents, and admins cheering them on,” says Sabrina Bates, one of the Pennridge staff members responsible for officiating home bocce matches. Beyond this, unified sports can also serve as merely the foundation for creating a complete culture of inclusion within a school, one which extends beyond sports.

While unified sports can be incredibly beneficial for schools, their implementation does not come without obstacles. According to the National Federation of State High School Associations, one of the biggest challenges that unified high school sports face is the availability of practice spaces. This is a challenge that not even Pennridge’s Unified Bocce team is exempt from facing. According to McHugh, the team would use the high school’s cafeteria as a practice space, but the room is not level and therefore is not suitable for playing bocce. So the Unified Bocce team would use Pennridge’s “white gym” which they would often have to share with the school’s basketball team, which did not present to be the ideal space to play in. Despite this, the Pennridge’s Unified Bocce team persevered and was still able to showcase their strong sportsmanship and impressive skills at the championship game.

The Pennridge Unified Bocce Team was, unfortunately, not able to advance to States. The team, however, still held themselves to the Special Olympics Athlete Oath they valiantly chanted at the opening of the game; “Let me win. But if I cannot win, let me be brave in the attempt.”