Lincoln East is a state-renowned school for good reasons. Since the 2021-2022 school year, East has won the Nebraska School Activities Association (NSAA) cup, three times, proving its athletic and academic excellence. For the 2024-25 sports season, East is trying to secure its fourth win in a row, but to do so, East has to beat its biggest competition, Westside High School in Omaha, Nebraska.
The NSAA cup is unique because it doesn’t just measure a school’s athletic ability, but also its academic ability. Many things contribute to the NSAA cup, from football to bowling, and even journalism. But how is the winning team decided? The NSAA cup is based on a points system, with the most successful teams getting the highest number of points in their individual activity. As of this year, East is sitting in second place with 417.5 points, only 44.5 points behind Westside. With spring sports going as well as they are this season, the Spartans are likely to have another plaque to add to the wall by the time fall rolls around.
East is able to achieve this success for many reasons, but senior athlete, Jadeon Carter, believes that teamwork and compassion here at East are the major factors.
“It is a team effort, there is no one individual person that is going to be able to do it all,” Carter said. “Contribution from every sport is important, and I think that just the depth that we have here at East both academically and athletically allows us to be in this winning position.”
The reason that East is so successful in NSAA activities is because over 75% of the student population at East is involved in one or more NSAA athletics or activities. But that’s not the only piece to this puzzle. Many staff and helpers in the East community also make this happen, like the Athletic Directors, parent volunteers, booster club members, and, most importantly, the athletes.
“A couple of things we have been able to do at East are hire extremely good coaches,” Lincoln East Athletic Director Zach Limbach said. “We’ve actively promoted the positive things happening at East. We developed a strong working relationship with our booster club, which works tirelessly to raise the necessary funds to afford training tools to make our teams better. We’ve encouraged the community to support our mission. We’ve held our programs to a high standard of excellence.”
East has made itself quite a name as three-peat champions of the NSAA cup and proven their hold on the rest of the state. East takes a lot of pride in the NSAA cup, even when other schools around them couldn’t care less about who holds the random title, but many students understand the importance and school pride that comes along with it.
“The NSAA cup is important because it demonstrates teamwork, which is a really important aspect in schools, and what a lot of schools strive to have,” Carter said. “But there’s no better place than East that shows that. We proved it last year and in previous years that we can accomplish that.”
Even with the 2025 senior class leaving us shortly, with an impressive legacy to follow, East is still ready to bring their A-game in the 2025-26 school year. Limbach already has the year mapped out for the success of the school.
“Every year gets more challenging to win it all,” Limbach said. “However, Spartans are always embracing the newest challenge, and it will remain a goal of ours to stay on top! Our objective is to engage the mind, elevate the spirit, and stimulate the best effort of all who are associated with East High School.”
East is a powerful school with an impressive footprint to fill, but students at East know that only good things are in store for these upcoming years. And lastly, remember, Roll Sparts!
