Madeline Kwarteng said she was near tears.

This time, it was a good thing.

The junior volleyball player at William Penn Senior High School found out Wednesday her sport was one of four saved by the district from budget cuts that have otherwise ravaged extracurriculars.

"I almost started crying. I was so happy," Madeline said.

That was a stark change of mood from last week, when news broke that all sports were on the chopping block because of the district's $19 million deficit.

"Everyone was so upset about it," said senior class president Marissa Scone.

Marissa, Madeline and others said they or their friends were seriously considering changing schools in the fall, continuing the mass exodus of students in recent years seeking greener pastures.

Now, that won't be needed.

"Everyone is better now," Marissa said.

It's not an entirely perfect scenario. Only basketball, football, track and volleyball were saved, with all other sports cut; a final decision will be made in June. High school band and secondary music and art teachers were saved, with K-8 classroom teachers having to take on educating students in those subjects.

But, as students and coaches said, it's better than nothing.

"You couldn't really fathom it," football coach Shawn Heinold said of a fall without sports. Heinold said his boosters and team families were already planning fundraisers in case football was cut. Now he hopes the team can get back to focusing on spring practices.

"Hopefully we don't have to go through this every year," he said.

Steve Queenan, the coach of the boys' tennis team, wasn't as fortunate.

"It's sad for the city. This is one less thing that the kids will have," he said.

Sixteen boys were on the team this year, he said.

Queenan, a high school teacher, added that even though it's nice some sports were saved, there are still teachers being let go by the district by the dozens. If there's extra funding, it might be best to save teachers first before sports, he said, even if he believes tennis can become a lifelong passion for students.

Tavon Parker said he couldn't imagine a year without sports. The football and basketball star uses sports to help motivate him to do well in the classroom.

"I'm a student-athlete, but the athlete part is big. Sports are big in our school," Tavon, a junior, said. "It would have been devastating (without them)."

Spirits were much higher Thursday, Tavon said.

"Something is better than nothing," he said.

There could be other options for sports that were cut. Wrestlers, for instance, have participated in York County School of Technology's wrestling program in order to field a team the past year. School officials were not immediately available to comment whether athletes from other sports would be able to do likewise.

- Reach Andrew Shaw at 505-5431 or ashaw@yorkdispatch.com, or on Twitter @ydblogwork.