Restricting fans to storm the field is like eating a delicious chocolate cake without the icing; it leaves out the true flavor. High schools, more specifically those in Montgomery County, should allow students to rush the field or court following an important victory to allow students to exercise their school spirit and preserve a longstanding sports tradition.

After scoring the game-winning goal in overtime to deliver Whitman its first soccer state championship since 2000, forward Jonny Mehrez immediately dashed to the stands. Dodging security guards, he leaped into the sea of students, followed by his teammates. Security staff soon separated the players from fans and ushered the team back to midfield to receive their trophies, restraining the students to the stands. Mehrez simply wanted to celebrate with the hundreds of fans who traveled two hours to root on the team. The least the security could do would be letting him share the victory without any restraints.

This security measure is the same for other sports. Currently, students are unable to participate in actions like charging the field or jumping into the stands following crucial victories to ensure the safety of all people. These security measures, although well-intentioned, discourage school spirit by not allowing to share the victories. Athletes play for their school, so they should be allowed to celebrate immediately with their peers.

Security measures at championship games or any playoff game should be reduced and, for incidents like Mehrez’s, made more lenient.

If a student attempts to rush the field after a game at Whitman, he or she will face a punishment, ranging from an immediate escort off the field to a suspension from the school, depending on the student’s behavior. Because the administration and security guards frequently warned students of these consequences, these punishments have yet to be tested.

There is overall very little risk in allowing students to rush the field. The administration defends the rule by arguing that there are many risks to student safety such as post-game fighting; however, it is ridiculous to presume that crowds consist of vicious and malignant people that can’t wait to get their hands on the other team after a game. Crowds frequently rush the field in college sports and other state high schools for a variety of reasons—a win over a rival school in football or a buzzer-beater in basketball. Yet there have been few if any negative results. Also, the usual crowd at a high school game consists of young teenagers and parents, so there is very little to be nervous about. Most students that agree that they go to these games for the social atmosphere, rather than actually rooting for the team, even though there are kids who do root for the home team. This is also one possible reason why there has yet to be any incidents involving student behavior after games.

If the current security measures are changed in order to allow fans to rush the field or court, school spirit and enthusiasm for the team would increase and one of the greatest traditions in sports would remain alive.