SPORTS
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WWW.GUlLFORDIAN.COM
Why do college
athletes quit
their sport?
BY KATY ANDREWS
Staff Writir
There has been a recent phenomenon at Guilford
College of student-athletes walking away from their
varsity sport teams.
Since Guilford was founded in 1837, sports have
been a part of the community. However, participating
in athletics can mean abandoning activities you enjoy.
"The time commitment and knowing that I wouldn't
be able to commit as much as my teammates were the
main reasons I quit tennis," said senior Adelaide Ayres.
"It prevented me from taking classes that I had wanted
to take in the past.
College sports are an enormous time commitment
with multiple practices a day, games during the week,
and tournaments out of state.
"When I came to Guilford, I was really looking for
the Guilford cross country team to fill the same role
it did in high school," said runner Meg Holden '12.
"Running in college was all about the competition
because the women's team had seven people on a good
day, which is the minimum number needed to score in
a race."
Quitting a team varies in reasons, but overall,
valuable players are missed due to the unfortunate
decision.
"The loss of these athletes has affected the team as
we had to adjust relays, and some were possible point
scorers for us at the conference championships," said
Danny Cash, head coach of the cross country and track
team. "It also hurts the continuity and structure of the
team."
Once a player is lost, squads must pick up the pieces
and move forward.
"My objective is to help them through their decision
and not to convince them one way or another," said
Chris Rusiewicz, head football coach. "Some students
quit because they may have come to a realization ... as
they lose that passion and can't keep up with the talent
level and time commitment"
Cash also had a similar perspective on why students
quit their sport.
"It is very hard to be an athlete here at Guilford,"
said Cash. "Not only do you have a very demanding
academic standard, but you are expected to be involved
in the community and also practice, travel and compete
in the name of the college. Some of those who get here
are able to manage this and some cannot and have to
make hard decisions about what to give up."
One athlete opened up about an experience while on
the team.
"My coach exhibited much favoritism and played
injured players when he had a whole bench full of
people ready to play," said an anonymous athlete. "My
coach ruined my confidence and made me hate a sport
I loved."
However, there's also a flipside to vacating a sport.
There is more time for that person to grow in other
ways throughout the community of their college.
"I don't think that we should always view leaving a
team as a negative for the student-athlete who leaves
or for the team that they are leaving," said Nick Black,
head baseball coach. "As a coach, I would never want a
player who does not enjoy playing their sport anymore
or feels the need to move on due to a shift in priorities
to continue with a team just because they feel like they
have to."
At Guilford, we value students who can think and
act for themselves and the well-being of others. If this
means quitting a sport to better the lives of themselves
and others, who are we to say they cannot do just that?
Men’s rugby season beating the odds
BY LAURA HAY
Staff Writir
Men's rugby at Guilford is a tight-knit brotherhood. This
contrasts sharply with last season when discord caused
players to quit and the team to collapse. This season was
different as the group was determined to make sure it never
happened again.
Rugby is a club sport, so students can come and go as
needed. If athletes are not committed, the team suffers.
"We canceled (last season) due to the commitment level of
the players," said junior Zach Kronisch, rugby team president.
"The leadership and officers weren't doing the tasks assigned
them. The president last year did a poor job of recruiting and
that left us with poor numbers to do the work that we need
to do."
The lack of leadership poked holes in the fabric of the team
causing conflict between members.
"This left a lot of infrastructure problems," said senior
Aaron Craig, team captain. "Morale dipped by the wayside,
and players stopped coming to practice."
Seeing such a rift left them disappointed but not willing to
give up.
"This year, our drive came from not wanting another
season like last year's," said Craig. "We've won our last two
matches in convincing fashion, and a lot of our first-year and
second-year players have really stepped it up."
Players striving for success have created a level of
commitment that has kept the team intact.
"Right now, we're at a stable point where we have at least
15 (players) and enough fo field at least one or two backups,"
said sophomore Brandon Wagstaff.
Having plenty of players led to improved results.
"The team is much more competitive this season compared
to last," said Dan Hayden, team coach. "Despite the small
numbers, they have managed to go 3-1 in the early part of the
season with another three matches to go."
The team worked hard this time to avoid internal problems.
They practice encouraging teammates, something they take
tremendous pride in.
"One of the most positive aspects is that we don't yell at
each other during a game, even if someone makes a mistake,"
said Wagstaff. "We're like, 'don't worry about it, let's get back
out there.' Not yelling at each other is very important."
They also encourage friendship off the field.
"The level of bonding is really high," said junior Ronnie
Nguyen. "We know each others' weaknesses and Strengths by
spending time together."
This helps create the brotherhood and will keep them on
track for seasons to come.
"The only obstacle is making sure the season doesn't end
like it did last season," said Kronisch. "That the guys stay
committed and keep their hearts in it; stay focused on the
future of the team and keep the next season going."
One key to maintaining the future of rugby at Guilford is
recruiting new members.
"If people try it once, I think they'll like it," said Kronisch
with a laugh. "It's a lot of fast action, people smashing into
each other — why wouldn't you want to watch that?"
The brotherhood is not exclusive. Everyone who wants to
try rugby is welcome.
"Come play rugby," said Nguyen.
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Softball players organize cancer awareness fundraiser
BY CHLOE LINDEMAN
Staf Writir
'There's a driving force behind why I
do it," said sophomore Rachel Howard.
"All my aunts have had some form of
cancer. It's a big thing in my family."
Howard plays first base on the softball
team, which is planning the second
annual Relay for Life event on May 3
from 6:00 p.m. to 1:00 a.m. at the Armfield
Athletic Center.
Relay for Life spreads awareness
of cancer and raises money for the
American Cancer Society. Relays are
organized around the world by different
groups looking for ways to give back.
Before the event, community members
who want to participate create or join
a team and get people and businesses
to sponsor them by donating to the
American Cancer Society.
Those who attend alternately walk
laps around the field, enjoy live music
from local bands, play games like water
pong, devour baked goods and much
more.
"What was it like last year? Hilarious,
said Howard. "Oh, God, it was so fun.
I met a whole bunch of new people —
athletes, non-athletes, people from the
neighborhood ... I had a blast."
One major goal of the team is to get
everyone on campus involved, bridging
the divide between athletes and non
athletes.
"You always hear the negatives about
athletes," said Head Women's Softball
coach Dennis Shores. "You always hear
when they get in trouble, but you don't
hear the good things about them.
"We're trying to ... shed the light on
what college athletes are all about."
Some of the team members also
stressed the importance of including the
entire campus.
"I think we just wanted to focus
on getting more of the community at
Guilford — non-athletes — involved,"
said junior Morgan Myers.
Senior Sarah Cutright said that the
team is doing as much as possible to get
the community to participate.
"Yes, (Relay for Life) is sponsored by
the softball team, but at the same time we
want community involvement in helping
to run it and organize it and to actually
be at this event," said Cutright. "Any
way we can get the community out really
right now is how we want to do it."
High hopes remain for the upcoming
relay, especially after last year's success.
In 2012, the softball team helped raise
around $9,000, and more than 200 people
attended.
The goal for May is to double the
amount of money raised last year by
including as many people as possible.
"Cancer strikes everybody in one
form or another, whether if s a parent,
a sibling, a relative, a close friend," said
Shores. "At some point in time in your
life, you'll be touched with it, so if s really
a good thing to get involved in."
Even before beginning its work with
Relay, the softball team worked to raise
money for the American Cancer Society.
"We've historically done a 'Score for
the Cure' game to fight breast cancer, and
I contacted the American Cancer Society
to ask them, 'What else can we do?"'
said Shores. "Their initial comment was,
'Well, there's Relay for Life.'"
Shores may have initiated the effort,
but the team members have taken over.
"We all decided ... that this is a pretty
good cause," said Howard. "We have so
many people on our team that can reach
out in the community. We thought that,
with our resources, we could do it."