The University of Connecticut’s women’s basketball team won their 100th game in a row after they defeated the South Carolina Gamecocks 66-55 on Feb.13, the team had not lost in 818 days. This is the first time a NCAA team, men’s or women’s, has reached this milestone. Since then, their streak has moved to a staggering 107 games, as they continue their undefeated season. This was an unbelievable feat in a world of sports that is so competitive nowadays, yet it did not receive as much recognition as it should have.

Over the past month and a half, I have attended the senior night games for both the boys and girls basketball teams, and they were two completely different experiences. At the boys’ game, the stands were packed, and the student section was as loud as it ever has been, cheering on the boys as they played a competitive game. But, at the girls’ game, the stands were about halfway filled with parents and family, and a few friends of the players.
It’s not just basketball, but in every sport. In the Winter Olympics, men’s ice hockey dominates the coverage, while their female counterparts are lucky to get mentioned once or twice. In soccer, the women’s national team has won three World Cup championships and four Olympic gold medals, compared to the men who have never won either of those events. Yet, despite the women’s successes, every time these events roll around, the main focus is how the men are playing.

At the end of the day, it’s the same game regardless of what gender is playing. There may be minor differences, such as the size of the ball used in basketball, or the type of pads worn in sports like lacrosse, but the rules and the main goal of the game remain the same. So why is there such a difference in the amount of people paying attention?

Dr. Cheryl Cooky, an associate professor of women’s gender and sexuality studies at Purdue University, describes sports as “mediated man caves.” She says it’s, “a space where men can go and know it’s going to be by, for, and about men.” The general stigma around sports is that the people who participate in them are jocks who defy the standards set by normal humans to go above and beyond what they should be able to do.

In no way does every boys team get the same publicity as the basketball and football teams, but neither do any girls teams. As a four-year member of the wrestling team, I witnessed first hand that not every male sport gets the same attention as basketball and football. For the most part, the stands were just above halfway filled with mostly family members, and a few friends for each meet. It would be inaccurate to say every boys team gets more attention than every girls sport. Boys sports can be more fast paced, whereas in sports like gymnastics, competitions aren’t an hour and a half and done, many times they can span over the course of an entire day, which conflicts with schedules.

Specifically at our school, there needs to be better promotion for the girls’ sporting events. Every morning during announcements, all we hear is about when, where, and who the boys’ basketball and football teams are playing. Just take a look at the @dgNzone Twitter account to find out all about the boys’ season, but good luck finding anything related to the girls. Students overall need to be more aware of which events are happening for not only the boys’ sports, but the girls’ as well.