For the first time since the 2017-2018 school year, the N.C. High School Athletic Association saw more than 200,000 student-athletes compete in sports last school year.

The NCHSAA released its participation data from the 2023-2024 school year on Monday morning, and it shows a significant amount of growth overall and in most sports year-over-year.

The data, which is reported to the NCHSAA by its member schools each year, shows 208,722 student-athletes competed last school year. That is up from 198,025 during the 2022-2023 school year, and is the highest figure since the 2013-2014 school year when 214,046 student-athletes were participating in high school sports in North Carolina.

In fact, the number of athletes competing in the NCHSAA last school year was the third-highest in the association’s more than 100-year history.

Every single sport saw growth in participation last school year with one exception: baseball. Despite five additional schools offering the sport in the spring, there was a decline of 153 student-athletes playing baseball — down from 10,727 in 2023 to 10,574 in 2024. A total of 414 schools played baseball this spring.

Which sports saw the most growth?

Winter cheerleading, which is called “winter spirit” by the NCHSAA, saw the largest increase in participation last year, adding 1,628 new athletes.

Cheerleading had been one sport that was slower to recover after the pandemic. However, 60 schools that did not offer the sport during the 2022-2023 school year managed to field teams this past winter.

The number of participants in winter cheerleading grew from 8,081 to 9,709.

Football continues to see a resurgence in participation in North Carolina. The sport is now closing in on 30,000 participants, reporting 29,075 student-athletes last fall. Football saw an increase of 1,266 participants last year, including one additional school offering the sport. A total of 383 schools fielded football teams in 2023.

Boys soccer also saw a large increase in participation, adding 1,100 new players and five new schools in the fall. There are now 407 schools offering boys soccer and 12,916 athletes participating in the sport.

Comparing numbers for wrestling year-over-year is not exactly comparing apples to apples. For the first time, the NCHSAA separated boys and girls wrestling participation data in the 2023-2024 school year as girls wrestling became a sanctioned sport.

However, in the 2022-2023 school year, the NCHSAA reported 9,988 athletes participating in wrestling across the state. This past winter, there were a total of 11,317 wrestlers participating — an increase of 1,329 wrestlers.

According to the NCHSAA data, there were 9,885 boys wrestlers and 1,432 girls wrestlers.

There were a total of 436 member schools in the NCHSAA during the 2023-2024 school year. Of all sports, boys basketball was played at more member schools than any other sport. There were 434 boys basketball teams in the NCHSAA. Volleyball was next with 432 schools fielding a team.

NCHSAA participation data only includes participation in sanctioned sports. Schools may offer other sports that are not sanctioned by the NCHSAA, such as flag football, bowling, or field hockey. Athletes participating in non-sanctioned sports are not counted in the figures released by the NCHSAA.

These participation figures also do not account for student-athletes participating at non-NCHSAA schools, such as schools in the N.C. Independent Schools Athletic Association.

Year-over-year changes for each sport

Fall Sports – 73,777 total participants

• Boys Cross Country: 5,821 participants, 395 schools (+510)
  • Last Year: 5,311 participants, 385 schools
• Boys Soccer: 12,916 participants, 407 schools (+1,100)
  • Last Year: 11,816 participants, 402 schools
• Football: 29,075 participants, 383 schools (+1,266)
  • Last Year: 27,809 participants, 382 schools
• Girls Cross Country: 4,279 participants, 382 schools (+195)
  • Last Year: 4,084 participants, 377 schools
• Girls Golf: 1,573 participants, 282 schools (+169)
  • Last Year: 1,404 participants, 270 schools
• Girls Tennis: 4,318 participants, 340 schools (+312)
  • Last Year: 4,006 participants, 337 schools
• Spirit: 9,776 participants, 386 schools (+208)
  • Last Year: 9,568 participants, 382 schools
• Volleyball: 10,303 participants, 432 schools (+524)
  • Last Year: 9,779 participants, 427 schools

Winter Sports – 55,964 total participants

• Boys Basketball: 11,409 participants, 434 schools (+166)
  • Last Year: 11,243 participants, 431 schools
• Boys Indoor Track: 7,331 participants, 304 schools (+833)
  • Last Year: 6,498 participants, 290 schools
• Boys Swimming: 3,338 participants, 305 schools (+35)
  • Last Year: 3,303 participants, 300 schools
• Boys Wrestling: 9,885 participants, 342 schools
  • Data for wrestling was not separated between boys/girls in 2022-2023
• Cheerleading: 9,709 participants, 414 schools (+1,628)
  • Last Year: 8,081 participants, 354 schools
• Girls Basketball: 7,663 participants, 429 schools (+193)
  • Last Year: 7,470 participants, 425 schools
• Girls Indoor Track: 5,912 participants, 306 schools (+836)
  • Last Year: 5,076 participants, 285 schools
• Girls Swimming: 4,487 participants, 306 schools (+182)
  • Last Year: 4,305 participants, 304 schools
• Girls Wrestling: 1,432 participants, 248 schools
  • Data for wrestling was not separated between boys/girls in 2022-2023

Spring Sports – 68,284 total participants

• Baseball: 10,574 participants, 414 schools (-153)
  • Last Year: 10,727 participants, 409 schools
• Boys Golf: 3,278 participants, 371 schools (+216)
  • Last Year: 3,062 participants, 371 schools
• Boys Lacrosse: 4,219 participants, 121 schools (+243)
  • Last Year: 3,976 participants, 118 schools
• Boys Tennis: 3,833 participants, 319 schools (+83)
  • Last Year: 3,750 participants, 314 schools
• Boys Track: 15,932 participants, 408 schools (+21)
  • Last Year: 15,911 participants, 408 schools
• Girls Lacrosse: 2,726 participants, 101 schools (+26)
  • Last Year: 2,700 participants, 99 schools
• Girls Soccer: 10,507 participants, 396 schools (+343)
  • Last Year: 10,164 participants, 389 schools
• Girls Track: 11,409 participants, 409 schools (+343)
  • Last Year: 10,164 participants, 389 schools
• Softball: 7,017 participants, 402 schools (+105)
  • Last Year: 6,912 participants, 398 schools

Source: highschoolot.com