As the leaves start to fall and a chill begins to linger in the air, excitement begins to grow around the fall sports teams at Upper Arlington High School. The 12 varsity sports offered during the fall continue to bring the community together year after year and
foster a sense of pride and school spirit. From the Friday night lights illuminating the football field to the cheers of dedicated fans filling the autumn air, UA’s fall sports scene has evolved into a celebrated aspect of local culture.

Sports have always been a cherished tradition in Upper Arlington. In the late 1910s and early 1920s, members throughout the community participated in various sports including tennis, horseshoe pitching and croquet. Horseshoe pitching was one of the more popular sports in UA and was a part of nearly every picnic, field day and celebration. The city hosted multiple tournaments with many prominent men participating in them including King Thompson, one of the community’s founders.

Football was among the earlier sports established in Upper Arlington. The first official high school team was formed in 1926. Since then, it has gone on to become an extremely successful program boasting four state championships in 1967, 1968, 1969 and 2000. Three of which were led by head coach and UA legacy Marv Moorehead.

Following the development of the football team, the men’s golf team was also established in 1926. The golf program at UA has developed into a dominant force, winning 17 state championships and producing legendary golfer Jack Nicklaus. The girls varsity golf team was later formed in 1996. Over the years, the girl’s team has regularly sent players to compete in the state tournament.

However, most of the girls’ sports teams were originally introduced to UA through the Girls Athletic Association. The G.A.A. was an organization that gave high school-aged girls the opportunity to compete in various sports including volleyball, field hockey, tennis and soccer. According to the 1935 edition of the Norwester, UAHS was one of the key contributors in providing girls with varsity sports for all seasons.

After being originally played in the G.A.A., a varsity volleyball team was officially formed in 1964, consisting of only a three-game season. The team has enjoyed numerous victorious seasons, making appearances in the state tournament multiple times.

In the late 1940s, men’s cross-country, or the “winter track team,” began to appear at UAHS. Over the next few decades, the team enjoyed steady success, particularly under head coach Marvin “Marv” Crosten. Between 1964 and 1973, Crosten led both the cross-country and track teams to eight district titles. In the late 1970s, Crosten went on to form the women’s cross-country team.
The program quickly became victorious, winning its first state title, of six, in 1978.

Nevertheless, there are three teams at UAHS that have distinguished themselves with their remarkable achievements, earning 45 state championships total: girls’ tennis and both water polo teams. After originally being established in the G.A.A., tennis went on to become a powerhouse, securing 15 state titles between 1981 and 2013. Likewise, boys’ water polo accounted for nine state championships between 1992 and 2022. Meanwhile, the girls’ water polo program was officially established in the early 1990s. Over the years, the team accumulated a total of 21 state championships. 12 of those titles can be attributed to Dan Peterkoski, the head coach of the girls’ team from 2003-2020. Peterkoski emphasizes that the success of his teams stemmed from the players’
determination and willingness to work hard.

“You have to do the right things. You have to be willing to follow a process that’s going to allow you to be successful and just put the time and effort in,” he said.

Peterkoski further highlighted the role of feeder programs, such as Upper Arlington Swim Club, stating that they were key components to the success of the team.

“I was blessed in the sense that I didn’t have to teach people how to swim,” he said. “There was really never a situation where we had to rebuild. It was just reload, reload, reload.”

Dave Purpura, a sports journalist for the Columbus Dispatch who has been reporting on UAHS athletics since 2011, also expanded on feeder programs that teach young athletes sports skills before high school. He explained that there are two crucial factors that have truly contributed to the success of UAHS sports teams.

“In general, you have the youth systems, which I think gets invaluable no matter what,” he said.

Purpura went on to note the importance of employing exceptional coaches for each team.

“And then the other thing that really stands out would be the coaching hires,” he explained. “If you don’t hire good coaches, you’re, you’re going to feel that, maybe not right away, but a couple years down the road.”

Similar to men’s water polo, men’s soccer was introduced to UAHS in the mid-1970s. In recent years, the team has achieved success as Ohio Capital Conference champions in 2021 and 2023. Likewise, girls’ soccer followed suit, and a team was developed in 1980. The program has since gone on to secure titles including nine-time division champions and ten-time district champions.
Additionally, the team won back-to-back OCC championships in both 2004 and 2005 as well as 2023 and 2024.

This trend of excellence is still evident across all the sports teams as noted by Purpura. He explained that football has frequently made the playoffs over the years, while water polo has secured numerous state titles for both boys and girls. Additionally, Purpura emphasized the dominance of both the golf and soccer teams in recent years.

“They’ve always been contenders in pretty much everything in their leagues, but there have been some that have been especially dominant over the years,” he said.

Purpura also highlighted the impressive performance of the field hockey team this season.

“Field hockey has only lost one game this year. That’s one that has really come up over the last several years with Coach Greaves and what she’s been able to do,” he explained.

Similarly, both cross country teams have remained dominant this season as the girls finished second in the OCC championship and the boys placed third. Additionally, the girls’ tennis team had both first and second place finishes in the district tournament.

The sports teams at Upper Arlington foster a strong sense of unity and pride.

As Purpura noted, “It’s something where you have a one high school town, that everybody is a Golden Bear, that you can rally around the teams.”

Regardless of the sport being played, games at UAHS continue to bring the community together and highlight the shared ‘Golden Bear’ spirit.