Whether you watch at home, root from the stands or take part in the sport, the emergence of athletics in society is inescapable.
However, there is a niche in the sports world that media coverage tends to ignore.
Collegiate club sports on campus typically receive very little coverage and even less publicity.
When covering a club sport, it’s imperative to capture the ups and downs that the specific sport is going through.
The club sports I’ve covered this year tend to have one common problem: recruitment of players.
Women’s lacrosse is a prime example of the strain of maintaining a club team at the University of Idaho.
Beginning Saturday at the SprinTurf, the lacrosse spring season will be underway. The men’s team will compete against rival Gonzaga at 1 p.m. Saturday.
However, women’s lacrosse at the University of Idaho recently announced the suspension of its program for the 2016 season. According to the Collegiate Lacrosse Association, all teams must have 12 players, a number that the program failed to reach this year.
In December women’s lacrosse club president Arianna Georgallis said the program was struggling because the team had to add new players with little prior experience.
Due to the lack of players, the program would have to spend weeks training the new players on the fundamentals of lacrosse, just so that the team could be competitive.
As opening day of the 2016 season approached on Saturday, many were hopeful the team would be able to reach the roster minimum.
On Tuesday Georgallis said the program didn’t have enough girls to play this season. The tournament would continue as planned, but the Vandals would not be on the field.
I find it unfortunate that club sports struggle to recruit students and compete, when previous experience in the sport is not necessarily required.
The athletes in club sports are not only players, they are also promoters, because the teams take time out of their schedule to actively recruit players. From flyers to information sessions for Greek houses, the athletes put in hard work in order to maintain the sport for another year on campus.
Women’s lacrosse is a reminder of just how difficult managing a club sport can be. However, if you were not involved in club sports like lacrosse, you probably would not have been aware of the recruitment struggles until now.
The lack of coverage for club sports shows just how hard it is for club presidents to revive the sport after it is shut down for a season.
Club sports are one of the only options available for students to continue playing the sport that they love at the collegiate level. But recruiting players can prove to be the downfall of any club sport, and can result in the termination of a program.
Luis Torres can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter @TheLTFiles
(Photo courtesy of Brenda Ely)