As Quidditch breaks out on the college scene, Marcus junior Sydney Hankins wants to bring this high-flying sport to Marcus.

Quidditch is the magical sport played on broomsticks in the Harry Potter series and muggles around the country are beginning to take interest. Sydney Hankins, a long-time Potterhead, is one such muggle.

There are only around twelve high school teams in the nation that have been sanctioned by the International Quidditch Association. The most local IQA team, according to Hankins, is Keller High School. She said that this was a prime motivator to begin a team here at Marcus. To become IQA sanctioned, the teams must seek approval from Principal Gary Shafferman and the school board. If they get the okay, they must pay their dues to be able to participate in actual matches. Getting IQA sanctioned is similar to being sanctioned by UIL.

“If we want to be IQA sanctioned, we pay our dues and basically we can play in the tournaments for free instead of registering like a bunch of the colleges do,” says Hankins.

Hankins sees the team as an opportunity for different people and social groups to come together. She said that students from various electives, such as band, theater, and athletics, are interested.

“I hope that it…would bring a different social aspect to the school,” Hankins said.

The Marcus team would feature four teams, one for each Hogwarts house. Although the average size of a Quidditch team is seven players, Hankins and her fellow house captains are allowing a maximum of 21 players on each team, giving each of the seven positions two back-ups and providing more students the opportunity to take part in team play. If the team is sanctioned, Sydney hopes to one day take her team to the Quidditch World Cup in New York and maybe even have a match to benefit charity.

“There are a lot of people, myself included, who really are not athletic at all, but when it comes to Quidditch,” Hankins said. “I love Harry Potter. It’s a nerdy thing, but it’s a lot of fun as well.”

The 2011 Quidditch World Cup will be held Nov. 12- 13 in New York City. The World Cup features various college teams and has been described as a combination of a renaissance fair and the Super Bowl, featuring face painting, live music and some major Potter mania. The players run around with brooms between their legs and play to the sound of match commentary provided by improv comedians.

Middlebury College in Vermont, a contender in the first ever World Cup in 2007 and the college Quidditch founder, ranks number one on the International Quidditch Association’s list of Top Ten Quidditch Colleges, followed closely by Arizona State University and Texas A&M.

The Quidditch World Cup has yet to feature high school teams, but Hankins has high prospects.

“I would hope to be approved one day this year,” Hankins said. “If we aren’t, then we’ll just be a crazy group of kids playing around on broomsticks.”