March 31, 2017
Club Sports Illustrated
Issue 82 A UREC Publication
Tales of the successful UNCG trip. Page 8
In This Issue Executive Corner 3 Women’s Lacrosse Spring Is Here
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Learning To Lax
Basketball 4 Women’s Rugby 12 Goodbye Game
2017 Matrix Season
Equestrian 7 Men’s Ultimate 15 It’s A Wrap
You Win Some, You Win Some More
Fencing 8 Women’s Volleyball See Ya At SIFA
March 31st Edition of Club Sports Illustrated Designed, Edited, And Published by Ian Hensley UREC Publicity Programmer Articles by App State Students Cover photo by: Lauren Brackett
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The End Is ‘Neer
16
EXECUTIVE CORNER
Ferdinand Stohr
Eric Horth If you were in Boone over spring break, you experienced another snow-pocalypse. Many of us mountain folk, like myself, thought “let’s fly south for break to expose these white as paper thighs and arms to some sunshine - and most importantly to avoid the snow.” However, if you went south thinking you would come back with a more than stellar tan - you were sadly mistaken. Needless to say the entire east coast of the good ole USA was under the wrath of cool temps and rain/snow. There were a few ups towards the end of the week - as snow was melting atop the mountain, temperatures increased in Florida and the mountaineers took to the beach, hoping one or two days in the sun would at least turn the white - hidden for three months under many layers of clothing skin - to off white. On my trip I saw many App State students all proudly wearing our colors and was able to see some fellow supporters of the App State Club Sports program. Even Yosef was there - just kidding it was Taylor Lamb. I had no idea who this was initially, perhaps a country singer? No! Indeed it was our own quarterback who aided our varsity football team in a pretty awesome season and bowl game win. Although it was not Yosef - it was still pretty cool. I hope everyone had an enjoyable Spring Break! Many of our teams traveled together to various places for a little R&R or to even compete during the break. Talk about dedication! Although the year is coming to a fast approaching close - our teams are more than active. From planning tournaments, round robins, away/ home games, and some teams working to regional and national rankings the Club Sports Program remains extremely active. As for the Executives, we have all had very successful Mid-Semester Budget Point meetings. These meetings are to ensure financial clarity and stability within the program, and all teams have taken to the new system extremely well. We are getting back into the groove of school and making tremendous amount of progress in our ever-present projects. Varsity Athletics has been a tremendous help with our planning for Banquet and Symposium and we are working with them to land a location for both of those events, using their facilities. We are also practicing for our Budget Proposal, and eagerly awaiting our approaching deadline of presenting to upper administration in mid-April. We are currently participating in mock presentations, and are eager to share the philosophy and mission of Club Sports across campus. Thank you for reading, and don’t forget to apply the Aloe Vera to that not so tanned but burnt and peeling skin!
Article By: Angena LeBarre Executive Officer
3
Basketball
The Women’s Club Basketball Team is preparing for our last tournament of the semester at the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. Our tournament will take place on April 1st and 2nd. We will be competing against several schools such as Clemson University, University of North Carolina at Pembroke, University of North Carolina at Greensboro, and Radford University. Recently we have been working mainly on our speed in practice as well as more fundamentals. Because we have not experienced a saturated winning season this year, we have condensed practice back to basics. With all the March Madness chaos going on, it is easy to jump in a game of pickup or practice and want to be elaborate and complicated. However, we remind each other weekly that defense wins games and we have to reward our offense with stellar defense. There are two seniors on the team that will play their last tournament this weekend: Summer Hamilton and Bekah Fultz. Hamilton has dedicated
4
GOODBY
the past four semesters to the team as well as Fultz, serving on the executive board for her now fifth semester. These two have vowed to bring a sense of passion and commitment this weekend to set the pace for the younger players on the team. The team will be traveling down after our morning classes on Friday and returning on Sunday, hopefully after a few hours on the beach. This is the first tournament at University of North Carolina at Wilmington App State Club Basketball has attended in two years. We are excited for a change of scenery and to finish our semester on a strong note. The season will commence next semester in September. Thanks for all the support and love this year, and we hope to see many of you at the first practice of the season!
Article By: Bekah Fultz Vice President
Jack Kane
YE GAME
Jack Kane
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Equestrian
IT'S A W
Annon Blue
Connor Smith
Gale Allen
6
Ivy Wagner
Olivia Moran
WRAP
Another season has come and gone for the Equestrian team. The 2016-2017 season was a very successful for both the English and Western teams. On February 26th Saint Andrews University hosted the regional competition for the Western team’s region. In which we had Hampton Kennedy compete in the beginner walk/ trot division, Savannah Parada compete in the intermediate division, Savannah Mathis compete in the novice division, and Corinne Bregman compete in the open reining. Along with the regional competitions, Saint Andrews also hosted our annual regional banquet where individuals are recognized for leadership and sportsmanship. Jarrett Barts and Maggie Ryan were among three nominated for the sportsmanship award. Also Savannah Mathis was nominated for the Senior leadership award. We can’t forget about our four legged friend Jackson who was nominated for horse of the year. On March 18th Averett University hosted regionals in which our dedicated hunt seat riders attended during their spring break. Competing in regionals was Catie Durbin in walk/trot/ canter, Katie Grimes in novice fence and flat, Brennan Miele in novice fences and flats, and Ivy Wagner in walk/trot/canter. At regionals our English team also received the Zone 4 Region 5 Sportsmanship Award. We are extremely proud of
the sportsmanship that each team exhibits at each and every show we attend. We are always sure to tell the host how thankful we are for allowing us to compete there and the four legged friends they allow us to ride. Now that our show season has come to an end, but we have some exciting events coming up in April here in the High country. On April 5th we are having a fundraiser at Comeback Shack, so be sure to visit one of your favorite local restaurants and tell them you are here to support the Equestrian team. On April 19th from 11 am- 2pm we are having Selfie with Chester event on Sanford. Selfies with the cutest miniature horse will be available along with calendars for sell to help Horse Helpers of the High Country. We will also be taking donations in which all proceeds will go to Horse Helpers. Last but not least we will be hosting our second annual horse show at the Broyhill Equestrian Preserve in Blowing Rock. If you have never attended a horse show and are curious what it’s all about this is the perfect opportunity to check it out, spectators are welcome. If you happen to have a horse of your own we would love for you to compete. Go Apps!
Article By: Corinne Bregman President
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Fencing
There is nothing like the biggest tournament of the year to help us spring back into action after a restful spring break! An early wakeup call last Saturday led to a long day of fencing, but we had a great time competing in SIFA at UNC Greensboro over the weekend. With over twentyfive teams in attendance, we learned a lot about orchestrating such a large event and are looking forward to the possibility of hosting one day. It was a successful trip for our men’s squads, with our sabre team making it to the second round of direct eliminations against George Washington University. Some of our foil and epee men competed on composite teams as well, which were also very successful. Chris Hatcher and Drake Rush, two of our epeeists, joined a composite team with a fencer from Eastern Kentucky University. Chris’ first experience with a composite squad turned out to be a positive one. He mentioned that he “is not an overly friendly person, but making new brothers in arms was a very positive experience.” Congratulations to our men’s squads for giving SIFA their all and making the best of the day! On Sunday, Maria Cilenti and I both fenced on composite teams with Virginia Tech and Eastern Kentucky University respectively. It was definitely challenging to solidify a composite amidst the chaos, but fencing on a squad with new people is always a learning experience and a great way to make friends at other universities. It is also an easy networking opportunity and a fun way to expand
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SEE YA A
our circle of potential tournaments. Overall, we had a lot of fun competing with our new friends and are looking forward to seeing them again at future events. A very special shout out goes to our guys who stayed to watch the women fence on Sunday! Maria and I really appreciate you all waking up so early to support us. Our day got off to a difficult start to say the least and the competition was very tough, but you guys pulled us through. It is the best feeling in the world to hear your teammates cheering you on and your support does not go unnoticed. Also, thank you to UNC Greensboro for hosting us and to Drake’s grandmother for the delicious cheesecake brownies. We will be wrapping up our competitive season with a bang as we head to UNC Wilmington and NC State University for our final competitions of the school year. To finish up the year, the officers are hoping to plan some fun team-bonding activities to soak up the warm weather. We will also be participating in ClubFest’s Battleship at the SRC pool this Tuesday, and we will be holding officer elections on April 4th. As always, take a look at our Facebook page and website for the team’s most recent updates and photo gallery!
Article By: Lauren Brackett Publicity Chair
Lauren Bracket
AT SIFA
Lauren Bracket
Lauren Bracket
Lauren Bracket
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WOMEN’S LACROSSE
LEARNING
Tina Wade
Tina Wade
Tina Wade
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Tina Wade
G TO LAX
When I first came to Appalachian, lacrosse to me was basically a sport for boys. Where I’m from, there are no girls’ teams or clinics, and I merely picked up the sport playing with a couple of my guy friends who played on our high school team. It wasn’t until college that I really got a chance to play Women’s Lacrosse, and stepping onto a girl’s field was a world away from playing with the boys. It was not until second semester of my freshman year that I decided to try playing with the Women’s Club Lacrosse team, and I walked into my first practice completely nervous but with the promise that the team could make me a Lacrosse player. And I was thrilled to find that they actually could. For the remainder of the season the entire team helped me at one point or another. There were certain girls that were particularly instrumental in my success, but it was amazing just how much of a family this team could be. And aside from games and practices, we spend just as much time together on the field as we did off of. We had movie nights, camping trips, hiking trips, and with more ideas that we simply just didn’t have the time for.
Now, looking back as a second semester sophomore with a starting position, this team has come a long way. I now have friends that I could never live without, and I could not say that if it was not for this sport and my team. I have also been to places in the past year and a half that I would not have gone during the year without Lacrosse, and I have had some amazing experiences with some amazing girls that was only made possible by Club Sports. So here is my advice: the school says that in order to be successful here you must be involved in at least two to three clubs, including Club Sports. Well, I agree, but I also advise, if you are athletic, that you find a sport you are crazy about, whether that is the same sport you played in high school or a new one that you have always wanted to try (and keep looking until you have found the right one), fall in love with it, and you will fall in love with the team members too. Some of my best friends were met on one field or another, and once I fell in love with my lacrosse girls I never looked back.
Article By: Jennifer Wade Council Rep
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Women’s Rugby
Although the 2017 matrix season has ended after the USC game last Saturday, the AHO Women’s Rugby team is still pumped and ready for more action on and off the field. It has been a phenomenal spring season for the team, the team as a whole has greatly improved to become a formidable and accomplished competitor. The rookies have shown enormous improvement over the course of the season and the team was able to give the seniors a fantastic and intense final match that they will remember for years after they graduate. It may be disheartening to say goodbye to this matrix season, but the team plans to continue the play with practices throughout the week, social events with the team, skills sessions to prepare for next year and friendly games between the AHO team and fellow rugby teams in the area. AHO plans on sending players to any tournament or pickup game available throughout the rest of the semester so that they will continue to gain experience and skills for next season. In the month of April, the team plans on sending players to Ruggerfest to make friends with other Rugby players at different universities and club organizations and to learn valuable new skills to
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2017 MATRIX
take into next season. There is also a fun social event scheduled called “Prom Rugby” against the welcomed team of Elon. The players of the AHO team are by no means finished with Rugby this spring semester; many fun rugby events are still to be enjoyed. A major component of the Rugby community is the fact that it is a social environment, the players on the team are tight knit and the players from different teams are friends off the field. Even without official games to play, one could easily bet that there will be pick-up games on the Mall and gym workouts with fellow players until the end of the semester. The team will get together for fam dins and beach trips and studying in the library until crazy hours of the night because that is what a Rugby team does. A Rugby team will be family even after the last whistle is blown on the last game of the season. The AHO Women’s Rugby team finished the 2017 matrix season strong, and still remains strong after stepping off the pitch.
Article By: Layne johnston Team Member
Christine Newcomb
X SEASON
Steve Cambell
Steve Cambell
Steve Cambell
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Men’s Ultimate
otto Solberg
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YOU WIN SOME, YO
otto Solberg
OU WIN SOME MORE The Nomads traveled to the always deceptive Harrisonburg, Virginia this past weekend for a tournament. Rounded the troops on Friday around 4pm and caravanned our way on good ‘ole I-95, she really is a beauty. About five hours later, boom! Hello Harrisonburg. Hello Freedom. The only downside from the weekend was that our motel was surrounded by cow farms, you could say there was quite the stench. But hey, stench rhymes with bench, and the bench is something the Nomads did not plop down on once this weekend. Lotta energy. Lotta focus. Nomads kicked off playing that wonderful Saturday morning against Shenandoah. Per usual we had those first game jitters, those butterflies bouncing around in the inside of your stomach telling you “hey don’t mess up out there.” Luckily we were able to rally and pull out the W, 13-5. Second game was against James Madison. I know I know, you are probably thinking what our entire team was thinking when we heard we were going to be playing the James Madison. Unfortunately, he was no where to be seen, apparently he died in 1836 due to heart failure. The things you learn at a Frisbee tournament. Anyway, can you say home field advantage? I mean come on, I thought these sanctioned tournaments were meant to be unbiased but this one was surely not. But as the Nomads did 300 years ago traveling the Serengeti’s, we battled. Final score wound up be 13-3 in the Nomads favor. At this point we are 2-0 and thinking, gosh this just feels like home. Third game was against George Mason. I know what you are thinking, “dude no way you guys played Frisbee with George Mason.” Let me get one thing straight, George Mason was not there, he passed away from natural causes, which I assumed was from a hurricane mixed tsunami, off the coast of Venezuela. But it is up to interpretation. Final game of the day was against the Night Train a.k.a. Virginia a.k.a. too easy. Nomads win 13-9
otto Solberg
I would now like to give some shout outs. Shout out Logan for leaving at 3am and somehow ready to play come Saturday morning. I am convinced that guy is made of some other material than skin and bones. Possibly Tony Stark, I will get back to you as I continue my investigation. Shout out to Motel 6, for that DANK breakfast. I am talking stomach growling food. Raisin Bran. Check. Frosted Flakes. Check. Waffles. Check. Cinnamon Rolls out of a bag. Check. Minimal Milk. Check. Breakfast of champions. Final shout out this week goes to the JMU security for not locking up any of their buildings during the night time. The Nomads played Frisbee golf on the gorgeous campus of James Madison. Somehow Ryan Clark pulled out the victory in that shooting an 7 on the back 9. I would also like to shout out Raj. The man turned 13 this weekend and we are happy to have him on the team! Here comes Sunday. First game was against William & Mary. Now I know what you are thinking. “Do crabs ever wonder if fish are flying?”. You better believe they do. The Nomads turned into fish on Sunday, and were flying and skying all over William, and a little bit on Mary. W. 13-3. Second game against Virginia again. Same result, W 13-7. Finals was against JMU part 2. They had a guy on their team rant about ranch for about twenty-five minutes on the sideline. So shout out to him, and let him never have to eat ranch again. W. 15-5. Nomads take first place. #classic. A final thank you to my cousin, Chelsea Grady for being the nicest human in Watauga county and picking up four of our newest players when they broke down on the way home to Boone. And to my loyal followers, I love you.
Article By: Myles Grady Secretary
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Women’s Volleyball
Only a few tournament remain as the Women’s Club Volleyball season comes to a close. The good news- you can attend! App State Women’s Club Volleyball is hosting a tournament at the Student Recreation Center this Saturday, April 1st starting at 10am! You can expect to see all four of our teams competing, along with other Carolina and local area college club teams. The team is enthusiastic about playing at home since being on the road to schools as far as Virginia Tech and UNC Wilmington. If you love good competition, a fun atmosphere, and Women’s Volleyball, please consider coming out to support our teams! In just a few weeks, the National team will be traveling to Kansas City, Missouri for the annual National Collegiate Club Volleyball tournament. Teams from all over the country attend from big and small schools alike, all with the honorable goal of coming home with the gold. The tournament includes both men and women’s club Volleyball teams. Last year the tournament was held in Louisville, Kentucky and the National ladies had a blast but did not place. This year the National team
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THE END
is looking stronger than ever. They already have a couple tournament wins under their belts and everyone is healthy and working hard in practice to improve both their individual play and their chemistry as a team. Big changes will be coming up soon. Several seniors are graduating, including those that have places on the executive board. Elections for members to take over these executive board positions will be held soon. In order to ensure that the transition runs smoothly executive board members are all open to questions regarding what it’s like to be on executive board. Although sometimes taxing, the work we do on executive board is overwhelmingly rewarding and is what keeps the club running. We are welcoming these big events & big changes with open arms. Be sure to read the next few Club Sports Illustrated articles to see how the season wraps up!
Article By: Natalie Bouchard Secretary
Mike Collins
IS 'NEER
Mike Collins
Mike Collins
Mike Collins
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LEARN MORE ABOUT CLUB SPORTS GO TO CLUBSPORTS.APPSTATE.EDU
Executive Officers
Nikko Weeman weemannk@appstate.edu
Angena LeBarre lebarreac@appstate.edu
Sophie Twarog twarogsr@appstate.edu
Coordinators for Competitive Sports:
Chris Carr carrcp@appstate.edu
Eric Horth horther@appstate.edu
Director of UREC: Joe Carter carterjr@appstate.edu
Assistant Director for IM + Club Sports: Erin Sanders sandersec1@appstate.edu
@AppStateClubSports
@AppStClubSports
Club sports@appstate.edu | (828)262-2100