By Jake Wolf ’17

Being on any high school sports team is a huge commitment. The responsibilities pile up quickly: practices every day after school, not being able to go away on vacations and a competitive nature. Many people enjoy sports but would like a more relaxed atmosphere. That is why intramural basketball is growing in popularity in West Essex High School.

Intramural sports started in colleges for people who wanted to take part in athletics, but either decided not to join a collegiate-level team or did not want to have to deal with the full commitment a varsity team demands.

Intramural games are played at West Essex Middle School on Friday nights.

One of the most appealing aspects for the players of intramural basketball is the wide variety of competition. Some students say that they enjoy the laid back culture of the game.

“It’s an opportunity to play basketball in a stress-free environment,” junior intramural player Evan Haas said. “You don’t have to take it seriously, you can just enjoy it.”

Other intramural athletes find the sport as a way to be extremely competitive while still having fun. Junior Cole Morrone is focused on winning as many games as possible, also known as “getting the W.”

“You see the W. You take the W. You take a bite from the W. You are the W,” Morrone said. “It’s all about the W.”

Senior class president Evan Snerson is currently the longest tenured player in the league. He is also a varsity fencer, meaning he does not have time to play basketball on the school team.

“Intramural basketball provides an organized, fun, competitive league that only takes up a couple hours (at most) per week. People can play the sport they love without taking too much time out of their busy schedules,” Snerson said. “I found the intramural basketball league and loved it. It has the competitiveness of an actual league without the daily rigor of a varsity sport.”

This sport has increased over the last couple of years, going from 31 players in the 2013-14 school year, to around 50 players joining  this year.

Recreation Director Michael Colitti, along with the rest of the Roseland Recreation Department, organizes the league. Private school students are also welcome in the league, as long as they live in North Caldwell, Roseland, Fairfield or Essex Fells.

“It’s a grind, man,” Snerson said. “Every Friday, you leave it all out on the court. It sets the tone for the upcoming weekend.”