Varsity athletics can be a big time commitment, and can put stress on students trying to balance a rigorous academic career. Oftentimes, even those who love playing sports or staying active choose to opt out. Luckily for these student there are other options that allow them to pursue an activity without the huge commitment of a varsity sport.
One option for these students is intramural sports, where teams only compete within the Trinity community. The fall intramural sports include 3-on-3 and CoRec basketball, flag football, indoor soccer, racquetball, and sand volleyball. Typically there are both A and B leagues. Any Trinity student can join intramurals as a Free Agent, or start their own team. Since competitions happen only within Trinity, students know their games will be close by, and they will play with friends and colleagues. Intramural games and tournaments also have a less professional atmosphere, and are made to be more of a way to have fun than a serious competition. This could be frustrating to some but beneficial for those who are just looking for a way to have fun and blow off some steam.
If you’re looking for a higher level of competition than what intramurals offer, club sports are another option. Club sports are teams that compete outside of the Trinity community, and include lacrosse, volleyball, equestrian sports, ultimate frisbee, tennis, trap and skeet, and soccer. The Trinity athletics website describes club sports as what fills the space between an intramural sport and intercollegiate athletics. In addition to just athletic achievements, students involved in club sports are expected to learn about public relationships, scheduling, organization and budgeting as many of these teams are both created and run by the athletes.
Club sports are a larger commitment than intramurals, and require students to be more willing to travel to compete. While this can be a stress on the student to balance academics and sports, it also allows students to get to play against different schools with varying skill levels, and can help players further grow in their sport.
For students who feel like there is a sport missing and believe that they could take on the responsibility of starting up a new team, there is an option to form a new club sport. For those interested in doing this, the first requirement is a minimum of 10 team members who are willing to commit to being on the team, and be familiar with the information in the club sports handbook, which can be found along with further information on starting and joining a team at the Trinity Tigers website. While this may seem like a risky undertaking, the risk and time spent forming a new team sport can pay off. The men’s lacrosse team is a great example, as it was started only recently and has already enjoyed great success.
Joining a team sport is not for everyone. For those who wish to either partake in a sport that is not a team activity, such as yoga or weight training, or just want to give an activity a try, Trinity’s many physical activity classes offer another option. These one-credit classes meet two to three days a week and allow students to try an activity in a controlled environment with teachers who will help them develop their skills.
Physical education classes include aerobic dance, body pump, intro swimming, yoga, trap and skeet and many more. All Trinity students are required to take a physical activity class at some point, so students can get class credit and fulfill one of the Pathways requirements while staying healthy and relieving stress. A full list of the open physical education classes for the fall semester can be found on a student’s TigerPAWS under the “Search for Sections” option.
