Worcester Academy - Athletics

Athletics

Worcester Academy is a member of the New England Preparatory School Athletic Council (NEPSAC). Worcester Academy plays most of the larger New England prep schools, and rivalries date back much more than a century. In certain sports, NEPSAC classifies the competition for post-season play and Worcester Academy competes with teams in Class A and Class B.

The formation of the Worcester Academy Athletic Association in 1885 was the official beginning of interscholastic sport at the Academy and like many Eastern boarding schools, Worcester Academy helped pioneer the growth of athletic competition in the United States. This tradition in sports has motivated many graduates to continue their involvement by playing sports at the college or professional level, or through coaching, officiating, management, medicine, apparel, reporting, charitable giving, and the arts.

The nickname of the school teams is the Hilltoppers due to the school’s location at the top of Worcester's Union Hill and the ram is the mascot because of the hilltop location. Approximately 60% of the students participate in an interscholastic sport on one of the 54 athletic teams. There are twenty-four different sports offered including in the fall: football, soccer, cross country, field hockey; in the winter: basketball, wrestling, alpine skiing, volleyball, hockey, swimming; and in the spring: track and field, baseball, lacrosse, crew, golf, softball, and tennis.