Why are athletic ECs so valued?

<p>Wow, I’m glad I didn’t see this thread last year when my son was applying to college. His only athletic EC was CYO (Church league) basketball. But he still ended up at a top-40 LAC.</p>

<p>I guess this should be making me feel better about my daughter, who is in 10th grade. She’s a good student but not as strong academically as her older brother - but she plays a varsity sport (played JV as a frosh, now Varsity hopefully for 3 years). As Bill Murray said in Caddyshack, “… so I got that goin’ for me.”</p>