By the time they reach high school, girls drop out of sports at double the rate of boys their same age. It’s a startling nationwide trend that often stems from limited access, declining confidence or lack of supportive environments — and it’s a trend the Woodson YMCA is determined to stop in its tracks.
On Sept. 12, the Y is hosting a Youth Sports Sampler event for girls age 4 and up. It’s part of a broader “The Y is Where Girls Rise” initiative designed to level the playing field, boost self-esteem and keep Wausau-area girls in the game.
Tyler Leiskau, the association director of youth sports at the Woodson YMCA, said the national trend is visible in the Greater Wausau community. The numbers don’t lie, some local sports leagues are having difficulty filling all the spots as participation diminishes.
“My wife is a head basketball coach at a local high school here, and she’s definitely struggling with participation from third grade all the way up to eighth grade,” Leiskau said. “Traditionally there’s always been one or two teams for each age group. Now she’s struggling to fill teams for third and fourth grade. There’s definitely a trend in our community of girls leaving sports.”
As for why girls drop out of sports at a greater rate, experts suggest it’s due a mix of physical, social and mental pressures, including fewer opportunities, rising costs, social relationships and lack of support. The Y Sports Sampler aims to address all those factors.
In an effort to give young girls the best opportunity possible, the sampler is for girls only.
“With a lot of co-ed sports I think girls are discouraged a little bit by how aggressive boys can be compared to girls. We’ve seen some social stuff too: girls have preferred to play with other girls,” Leiskau said. “We talked to a number of girls and give them an option of would you rather play with a co-ed, traditional style or with just the girls, and overwhelmingly they choose to just play with the girls.”
The free Youth Sports Sampler event will be hosted at the Aspirus Weston Fields at
3402 Howland Ave., Weston, from 9 a.m. to noon. The event will give girls and their families the opportunity to explore multiple sports — including basketball, volleyball, flag football and dance — in 20-minute sessions.
“The idea behind it is to have a welcoming environment for girls to come in and try at their own pace and find what their own interests are. Some girls might want to stay at basketball for 40 minutes or so, or they might want to try every single sport for a couple minutes,” Leiskau said.
Research consistently shows that girls who participate in sports gain benefits that extend far beyond the field or court, including higher self-esteem, stronger leadership skills, improved academic performance and better physical and mental health outcomes.
“There’s a lot of research that shows kids that move for an hour a day have better academic success,” Leiskau said. “For families that are looking for less screen-time this is a great alternative, too. Get them an hour in a gym or outside, burn off some of the steam from the day, learn a new skill, gain some new friends, build some confidence — those are all great qualities that we can provide at the Y.”
Registration for the Youth Sports Sampler is requested but not strictly required. The event is free and sponsored by Kristo Orthodontics and Summit Credit Union.
“The sports sampler is 100% free because of these donations,” Leiskau said. “Having the community behind us on this speaks to how strong our community is and how important our community thinks girls in sports is.”
To register for the sampler or learn more about “The Y is Where Girls Rise” programming, visit woodsonymca.com.
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