The GCS Athletic Program provides a means to teach how a Christian should compete in their sport as well as function in other aspects of life. GCS athletes must participate in such a way that honors their team, our school and the Lord.
Grace Christian is committed to developing a perspective on winning and losing that is consistent with the teachings of the scripture. We expect our athletes to dedicate themselves to this goal. Our challenge is to be in contrast to a sports world that emphasizes winning at any cost. Winning should be one of our goals, but we recognize that sports presents a beneficial learning experience, regardless of the outcome.
The mission of Grace Christian Athletics is to provide an excellent sports program that will help our students develop their God-given abilities. We want our student-athletes to honor and glorify God in all that they do (I Corinthians 10:31). Athletics is something that God allows us to do, not something that defines us. We need to make God first place in our lives (Matthew 6:33).
GCS athletic teams are 2A members of the Raleigh Area Athletic Conference (RAAC) as part of the North Carolina Independent School Athletic Association (NCISAA).
The Middle School Athletic program is the foundation of all GCS athletics. Available to students grades 5 through 8, this stage of development is the most important level of learning and includes:
Middle School athletics gives us an opportunity to not only refine each player’s individual skill sets, but more importantly to build their character as team members, leaders, Crusaders and followers of Christ.
In order to give more students the opportunity to grow and compete in athletics, Grace offers Gold developmental teams in some of our Middle School sports. These teams are heavily focused on fundamental skills. They have an approximate 50% reduced game schedule in order to invest more time in practice and training.
Practice or games run at least 4x a week for Green Middle School teams, and at least 3x a week for Gold developmental teams. Wednesday is normally the off day, but they may practice on Saturdays due to limited athletic space during the season.
The Junior Varsity Athletic program is available to students grades 6 through 10 for athletes who have mastered the fundamentals taught in the middle school program. Fundamental skills are refined with an increased intensity for excellence, competition, and complexity of Soccer strategies.
GCS Junior Varsity athletes must be prepared to compete for playing time. Our goal is to prepare our athletes for the demands of the Varsity program, training them to be ready to contribute immediately. Decisions related to playing time are made solely at the coach’s discretion.
Junior Varsity teams practice/or play at least 4x a week.
The privilege to wear the GCS Varsity uniform is reserved for our top athletes, grades 7 – 12, who have mastered fundamental skills with increased intensity for excellence, competition, and complexity of Soccer game strategies. Varsity players must demonstrate a consistent display of the core Christlike characters traits of our athletic program: Diligence, Endurance, Boldness, Obedience, Faith, Humility, and Dependability.
Varsity players must be prepared to compete for playing time and work to keep it. Seniority of a player is not a factor. Our Varsity players are judged on athletic ability, work ethic, attitude, and knowledge of the coach’s strategies.
Competing to win is strongly emphasized, without sacrificing the display and the development of Christ-like character. GCS Varsity athletes are expected to act accordingly to their roles on the team, and contribute unselfishly in accordance with their abilities. Playing time will be determined solely by the coach/coaches. Coaches will not discuss playing time or strategy.
Varsity teams practice/or play at least 5x a week with possible Saturday practices and games.
