We believe there’s something more important than just winning or losing a tournament. We believe that the team, school, and fans who support their athletes with dignity and class are the true champions. That’s why we’ve proudly sponsored the WIAA/Rural Mutual Insurance Sportsmanship Award for 54 years.
We would like to congratulate Luxemburg-Casco on being this year’s recipient of the Girls Volleyball Sportsmanship Award. This is the third time the Spartans have earned this honor and the first time in girls volleyball. Their large fan base displayed outstanding sportsmanship, enthusiasm and community support.
“There were so many memories made along the way this season, but some of the best ones are looking up in the stands and seeing the unbelievable support from the school and community. ”
When talking with Head Coach, Jeff Frey we asked him what this award meant to him as a coach, the team and community along with how they teach their athletes about sportsmanship.
2019 was a season full of unbelievable memories, of all of them leading to winning our first State Championship in program history which is something none of us will ever forget. Finding out that along the way people saw our girls, program, school, and community do things the right way, the Spartan Way, was an amazing feeling as well. This is truly a community award I hope everyone is proud of. There were so many memories made along the way this season, but some of the best ones are looking up in the stands and seeing the unbelievable support from the school and community. A few that stand out were at our Sectional Semi-Final against Notre Dame in the last game ever to be played in our “old gym” and seeing standing room only, or our entire side of the gym filled up at the Sectional Final at Little Chute, or WIAA having to open up two entire roped off sections at the state tournament to make room for our fans. Our fans were amazing. They supported our girls and represented our community in such a positive manner. In our program we talk a lot about playing Spartan Volleyball and representing ourselves, our school, and our program in a positive way that all can be proud of. Not only did our girls do this all season, but our community stepped up to the plate in a big way supporting the team and exemplified what sportsmanship looks like. I hope everyone takes pride in this award and is proud to say…WE ARE SPARTANS
Sportsmanship is an extremely important part of sports and life and often gets lost. In our program, sportsmanship and the way we represent ourselves is very important. We focus on being a family. Not only trying to develop great athletes, but more importantly great young women who care about others. Our motto and three pillars of our program are Support, Protect, and Trust. In life things don’t always go the way we want. We may lose games, we might not get what we want but how we react to adversity and how we respect and treat others is very important. One of the big things we focus on is servant leadership and giving back to others. Our girls take an active role in our Annual Pink Out night, this year we raised over $18,500 alone and over the past 11 years we have raised over $100,000. The girls spend time working with youth teams in the area and have volunteered in numerous other ways in the community. We work very hard on developing great young ladies in our program who are willing to help others and believe that translates onto the court not only in the way they play the game, but also in the way they treat others and the level of sportsmanship they show.
This is coach Frey’s 8th year as head coach and his 13th year with the program. His favorite part about coaching are the relationships he has built with the players, families and community. Coach Frey went on to say Spartan Volleyball truly is a family. The pride his players take in being part of Spartan volleyball and giving back even after they have graduated is fun to see. The number of past athletes who reached out to him or his current players to give words of encouragement or congratulations is something special.
Coach Frey is very proud there are so many young ladies, coaches and families who have worked hard to build the program to what it is today. They have been great role models for future Spartans to look up to. He is also proud of the leadership and pride that his players take in Spartan Volleyball and the friendships they have built that will last a lifetime. In the end that truly is what matters most and what they will remember long after their playing days are done.
Congratulations again on a great season and winning the WIAA/Rural Mutual Sportsmanship award. This is a great achievement for the Luxemburg-Casco community.
