To compensate from the lack of funding from the school district, the Souderton ice hockey team works to raise money to support the team.
The hockey team, while wearing the school name, is only considered to be a club team, as they are not under Souderton’s insurance.
According to Souderton athletic director Dennis Stanton, ice hockey is not considered to be a “school-sanctioned sport.”
“It’s not a PIAA sport,” Stanton said.
PIAA (Pennsylvania Interscholastic Athletic Association) is the “governing body” of Pennsylvania school sports.
PIAA also divides sports into the divisions in which they play, as well as managing procedures and guidelines in certain sports.
The status of ice hockey within PIAA standards leads to some high school ice hockey teams being individually funded by the players’ families and coaches.
Head coach Ryan Uchniat said that the team tries to create their own funding.
“The team splits some of the revenue associated with ticket prices and we do some initiatives where we sell merchandise and get a little bit of that back,” Uchniat said, “but [funds] pretty much just come out of the players’ and their families’ pockets.”
After his fifth concussion while on the team, junior Patrick Callahan believes that money has a big role in the sport, not only for his injuries, but his basic equipment.
“Helmets are $200-$300 and gloves are around $150,” Callahan said.
With 50 years of experience under his belt, assistant coach Scott Ryon appreciated the community support he had as a high school player.
“I grew up in a situation when I played in high school where the school funded the team,” Ryon said. “The involvement in hockey where I grew up was very significant at the high school because it was a community-based program.”
Uchniat, being a Souderton alumna and Souderton hockey coach for six years, said that Souderton ice hockey helped him during his high school years.
“We’re so thankful that we get to represent the school and our town on our jerseys,” Uchniat said. “That’s why we do it. We like to be with our classmates and that’s what it’s all about.”