Using an expletive to express his outrage at the news media for its coverage of the students, Mr. Gerdes called the events a “nonstory.”

“It should be reported how great these young men did in the face of these protesters who were trying to bait them,” he said in a phone interview on Monday, calling the events a political attack against Catholics for their opposition to abortion rights.

“The left has an agenda,” he said. “Facts don’t really matter to them if it goes against their agenda.”

Other parents and friends soon changed their social media profile photos to a blue-and-white “C,” in honor of the school’s logo.