This past week I spent time at a school sporting event in my district. There were proud parents and family members on hand to cheer on the student-athletes.

School officials were present to watch the competition and represent the school. A number of residents from the community also turned out to offer their steadfast support.

Pictured: NY Senator James L. Seward poses with the Gilbertsville Mount Upton Clay Raiders. (Submitted photo)

The student-athletes themselves were an impressive group. It was clear that they have put in hours of practice and worked hard to develop their skills.

I perceived a strong camaraderie between team members and coaches alike.

While some of the athletes performed better than others, no one team member was more valuable than another and it was clear that there were no superstar attitudes.

During the spring sports season in New York State, our high schools are competing in a number of terrific sports – baseball, softball, lacrosse, golf, tennis, and track and field.

This competition was none of those. The event I took in was clay trap shooting and the team from Gilbertsville Mount-Upton Central School is known as the Clay Raiders.