Bishop Seabury Academy fall sports athletes, clockwise from top left, Libby Sutherland, Hannah Spomer, Jun Kim, Fischer Almanza, Calli Noller and Jamie Fischer will be counted on by the Seahawks in their respective sports this fall.

A quick glance at the fall sports rosters at Bishop Seabury Academy reveals one telling thing about the school’s athletic program: The athletes like to play.

Nearly all of the names on the fall sports program also can be found on the field or floor during the winter and spring sports portion of the school year. That, according to Seabury athletic director Eric Nelson, is by design.

“Basically, every kid in the school is either going to be able to play this fall or at least be on a team,” Nelson said. “That’s been a school policy here for quite a while, but we’re really emphasizing it this fall. That’s when we have the most programs up and running, and that’s when we want the kids to be involved as much as they can.”

For the non-sports fans at Seabury, enrolling in things such as drama or other, off-campus activities can fulfill the requirement. But most, Nelson said, choose to go the athletic route.

With four fall sports — girls tennis, cross country (boys and girls), volleyball and football — and varying degrees of past success in all of them, there are plenty of options for anyone from the most experienced and serious athlete down to the rawest beginner.

Nelson said most of the athletes are not even aware of the policy. Most spend their summers planning on playing.

“For the kids, it’s not a big deal,” Nelson said. “They like to play sports, and they all do so willingly. That’s the status quo here, to achieve highly in school and to be involved. It’s rare to not have someone involved.”

If someone isn’t, people usually take notice.

“It’s a small enough environment here, that if you’re not out, it shows, and everyone around you knows it,” Nelson said.

The increase in participation this fall is just one of the factors that has contributed to an almost annual improvement in all sports at Seabury.

Last fall, the Seahawks football team finished the season with a winning record and captured the heart of the students and faculty in the process. Last winter, the boys basketball team set a school record for victories.

Nelson said he thought the recent good fortune also has helped.

“Kids are human,” Nelson said. “Success in the win column has been kind of slow coming, but we’ve had our moments. We’re definitely not a big-time sports school, but everybody plays sports because it’s important to them, and it’s an important part of the overall experience of being a student-athlete here at Seabury.”