Fenton High athletics earned its 10th consecutive Flint Metro League All-Sports Trophy for the 2012-2013 school year, beating out second place Linden by a full 20 points.

Already having four teams finish with undefeated 2013-2014 seasons, Fenton is now working to keep the trophy on its shelf for another year as they enter the spring sport season.
Even though Fenton’s Metro League finishes are at the top of the pack, some teams’ standings at the district level and beyond aren’t as competitive. For these teams, part of the reason is the Metro does not possess the talent needed to challenge and prepare FHS athletes for higher level play.

 
“League meets don’t prepare (Fenton) swimmers for state level competition,” varsity swim coach Brad Jones said. “We have dominated the league for some time, but have yet to finish high at the state meet as a team.”

 
In order to seek out more aggressively stacked teams, FHS coaches often schedule competitions against teams in other conferences.

 
“I always try to schedule the hardest teams for non-league contests,” varsity soccer coach Matt Sullivan said. “That mainly includes schools from Oakland County and many private schools. We rarely beat these out of league teams, but I believe they have helped us go as far as we have in the state tournament.”

 
Although venturing out of the league is a method many Fenton sports’ teams use to improve their talent, permanently leaving the league to match skill level is not a favorable option.
“We shouldn’t move out of the Metro League,” Jones said. “We are not top in every sport to justify leaving the league. It is a better fit just to travel outside of the league for out-of-conference competition. However, I am open to welcoming stronger schools into the league.”

 
Welcoming stronger schools into the Metro is something league officers have done and that athletes can expect next year when Flushing High School appears on the sports roster.
“Flushing will officially join the league during the 2014-15 school year,” Flint Metro League President Brian Wiskur said. “It was the general consensus of the league members that Flushing was a good fit for the league because of their similar enrollment to other Metro League schools and the quality programs they offer.”

 
Flushing’s quality programs are looking forward to creating new rivalries, according to Flushing Athletic Director Paul Brieger, which means FHS athletes may struggle to maintain perfect seasons come fall.

 
“Flushing is strong in all sports but I’m nervous about the All-Sports Trophy and potentially losing it,” Sullivan said, “but stronger competition makes everyone better, even though it may hurt our record.”

 
Having the chance to compete against Flushing High next year at the Flint Metro League level should be a great opportunity for Fenton’s sports’ teams to challenge their skills and prepare for competition at the district level and beyond.