IN THIS
ISSUE 04
FINDING A BALANCE TRIATHLON TEAM
06
HORSESHOWS AND CHESTER EQUESTRIAN TEAM
08
PLAYER SPOTLIGHTV: LEXI UVA WOMEN’S LACROSSE
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PREPARING FOR REGIONALS WOMEN’S SOCCER
SPOTLIGHT: 12 PLAYER ERIN KANE WOMEN’S BASKETBALL
Director of UREC
Publicity Programmer
Joe Carter, carterjr@appstate.edu
Alyssa Gribble, gribblead@appstate.edu
Director of Club Sports
Executive Officers
Erin Sanders, sandersec1@appstate.edu
Activities Coordinator Chelsea Watson, watsoncg@appstate.edu
Philicia Gibson, gibsonpn@appstate.edu Ian McNeill, mcneillim@appstate.edu Katherine Uva, uvakr@appstate.edu
14 KEEPING WARM WOMEN’S ULTIMATE
SEASON, NEW 16 NEW SCHEDULE SNOWBOARDING TEAM
18 TRAINING TO WIN ALPINE SKI TEAM
19 AERO IS EVERYTHING CYCLING TEAM
20 EXECUTIVE CORNER 21
FOLLOW US!
For more information on any of the club teams, visit the website: clubsports.appstate.edu email us at: clubsports@appstate.edu or call us at the Student Recreation Center (828) 262 2100
The September 12th Edition of the Club Sports Illustrated Designed by Alyssa Gribble
TRIATHLON TEAM
A
s a club sports athlete, one is not paid to compete for the school. Rather, they are simply supported by the school and pay the majority of costs for
WRITTEN BY: RILEY PARR,
competition, equipment, etc. out of pocket. Because
club sports scholarships are non-existent or significant financial support is limited, this means that their sport is much less of a
SECRETARY
priority than that of a Varsity athlete. A sense of individualism is felt in the club sports world, because our competitive pursuits are
I would rather spend time doing what I love, I know that
driven by our dedication and passion alone.
working hard on my school work will pay off and land me the job I will really enjoy, instead of a job I will tolerate. Studying harder
I love going out, having fun, and competing more than anything,
may even land me a job that makes me more money. I know that
but just like parents say, “we are here to get an education.” This
they say that money doesn’t buy happiness, but money buys bikes,
means that training gets put on the back-burner sometimes,
and by my shorts I know bikes make me happy!
especially with school work and other obligations. This season, some of our triathlete’s training schedules went from training twelve times a week to closer to two or three short workouts a week this month. While we strive to become faster, we must cope with the fact that we are pulled in different directions. This is a hard fact that many triathletes, including myself, must come to terms with. Studying does not have nearly as fast as a payout as training does, but the long term benefit can be greater. Sure, while the prospect of tediously writing a paper or working on a huge project aren’t enjoyable, a good student who works hard now, invests in a future of more fun times doing what they love. For me, I will be able to race my entire life (knock on wood). I know that I should go all out during my youth while I still can, but there will always be another race that I know I will still have a blast doing in the future. For me, I have a hard time focusing on school when all I can think about is getting outside, and I’ve slowly but surely gotten better at finding that balance between work and play. No matter how much
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“
I’VE SLOWLY AND SURELY GOTTEN BETTER AT FINDING THE BALANCE BETWEEN WORK AND PLAY
”
5
EQUESTRIAN TEAM
WRITTEN BY: KATHERINE UVA,
The Appalachian State University Equestrian Team competes against other Club Sports and NCAA teams in what is called the Intercollegiate Horse Show Association (IHSA) and Intercollegiate Dressage Association (IDA). Both the IDA and IHSA are our national governing body under which we are held to high standards and regulations. However, there is a twist to when it comes to us competing, we don’t ride horses we know. When
PRESIDENT
we go to a competition we ride horses that are unfamiliar for us because the host school is who provides them. Horses can be different like people, having different personalities and moods, so it is truly luck of the draw when we pull out of hat what horses we are to ride that day; this is called catch-riding. As President of the team, I always get nervous because I never want one of my riders to draw a bad ride, or a “bad” horse. That being said, I believe that catch-riding shows true riders abilities because it levels the playing field of riders from all of the ten schools that arrive for the one competition. Being able to control multiple levels of horses demonstrates the riders’ abilities, determination, and raw talent. Outside of the intercollegiate horseshow world,
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showing is all about how much money
campus. Our team members expressed
someone has. An individual can always
interest in raising awareness for the local
sit pretty on a quarter million dollar
horse rescue, and they did just that. We
horse, but that doesn’t mean they know
had over 300 students sign in and find
how to ride. My riders are those that
out more about how they can help Horse
put their time, sweat, blood, and tears
Helpers of the High Country. Weekend
into our team and sport. Equestrian is a
after weekend, my riders are going out on
sport that is not always acknowledged by
their personal time to the horse rescue
people, however I would put my athletes
to volunteer and help with all types
up against any other sports because they
of tasks. We are half way through this
are mentally and physically, extremely
semester, and my men and women have
tough.
already done so much, that I am beyond honored to be the president of such an
Asides from being super athletes, my riders are also amazing community members. Two weeks ago, the ASU Equestrian team hosted Chester, a miniature rescue horse from Horse Helpers of the High Country, on our
organized and successful team.
“OUR RIDERS
PUT THEIR TIME, SWEAT, BLOOD, AND TEARS INTO OUR TEAM AND SPORT
”
7
“LEXI IS A PL WRITTEN BY: OLIVIA CHASON CLUB SPORTS COUNCIL REP
8
HER TEAMM ALWAYS CO GIVE 100% GAMES AND
WOMEN’S LACROSSE
Lexi Uva is in her sophomore year at App State and has been on the team since her first semester here. She wears jersey number 3. Lexi started playing lacrosse in the 7th grade when she decided to try a different sport, since she had been playing soccer since she was little. She found that she liked lacrosse more than soccer and continued on to play in high school and now at App. This is her eighth year playing lacrosse. Lexi has always played midfield because she enjoys that the position allows her to play both defense and attack. Lexi is always motivated to come to practice because she loves the fun and welcoming atmosphere that the girls on the team have created. She says that her teammates “always keep things interesting.” Lexi loves competing at the club level because it is still serious competition, but
LAYER THAT MATES CAN OUNT ON TO % DURING D PRACTICE
”
the team is still able to have fun. She enjoys bonding both on the field and off the field with the team. “I think it is really great that this team has brought all of us together. A lot of us played against each other in high school, which is cool because now we have the opportunity to play together. We have taken all the skills that we learned separately from different teams and coaches and brought them together in order to benefit our team and it has paid off.” –Lexi Uva
Fellow teammate Philicia Gibson says “Lexi is a player that her teammates can always count on to give 100% during games and practice. She always leaves it all on the field.”
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WOMEN’S SOCCER
WRITTEN BY: TAYLOR BRANTON, PRESIDENT
The start of the season brought promising
opportunity to move onto the next level. This
Salem’s BB&T Soccer Complex. To prepare for
results for the women’s club soccer team this
year will be different. We plan to take a full
this large tournament, we have been staying
season with the largest class of freshman
roster and make our way down to Winston
focused in practice, working on our weaknesses,
and returners during my four years here at Appalachian State. With a diverse set of skills and positions, the officers knew this would be a great season. During the first officer meeting held for the women’s club soccer team, we came up with our goals for this season. Last year was our first year at Regionals since my freshman year. Regionals are held in Winston Salem and bring schools from all over. Clemson, UNC Chapel Hill, Duke, Auburn, and many other schools all compete for a chance to go to Nationals. This year, our main goal was again to make it Regionals and compete with some of the best clubs around. During Regionals last year, we were low on numbers and unfortunately did not have the
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“WE HAVE BEEN STAYING FOCUSED IN PRACTICE, WORKING ON OUR WEAKNESSES, AND BONDING AS A TEAM
”
and bonding as a team. During practices, our Coach Scott Smith brings a diverse set of workouts and drills. We are working harder on our fitness this year compared to last, and it shows during our conference games. We rarely tire as a team and are able to put fresh legs on the field often. We are also working on set pieces such as corner kicks and putting the ball into the back of the net. Our conference games allowed us to see what we do well together as a team, while also showing us what we need to improve on as a team. Coach Smith closely watches these games and uses what he sees and what we talk about as a team, to plan out the next practice.
We finished our regular season 2-2-1. Our conference consist of some pretty tough teams, including Virginia Tech, University of Virginia, and James Madison University. All the games were pretty close in score, and we had a fair shot at winning each of these games. With midterms behind us now, our girls can fully focus on these next two weeks of practice so we can play our best at Regionals. We will be back at State Farm working harder than ever to set the mentality and mindset we need for Regionals. We hope to win all of our games and have the chance to look at going to Nationals, while also showing that the Appalachian State Women’s Soccer Club is a force to be reckoned with. We encourage anyone who will be in the Winston Salem area to come support us on November 1st as we take on some of the best teams in our area.
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WRITTEN BY: ALYSSA HORAN, SECRETARY
ERIN KANE Freshman Erin Kane has been a huge asset to the women’s club basketball team this season. She is the only freshman that joined this year, but her maturity on the court shows otherwise. She answered a few questions in order to shed light on how she has had a lot of success so far.
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1.
How long have you played your sport? What keeps you motivated?
I’ve been playing basketball since 1st grade and through the years my family’s, coach’s, and friend’s support and help has
3.
How are you able to balance school and sports?
It is hard to balance school and sports, however it is nice to have that few hours of break in between studying to relieve some stress. Balancing the two takes a lot of time management.
kept me motivated on becoming a better basketball player. My favorite part of being on a club sports team is making great friends and memories with my teammates and being able to travel and represent Appalachian State while playing the sport I love.
2.
How do you spend your breaks in relation to your sport?
4.
Do you have any advice for athletes wishing to succeed in their sport?
The most important advice I would tell athletes hoping to be successful in Club Sports is to have fun and make friends above all, because once you do that the rest becomes easier. Making relationships with teammates comes a long way because when in a game or practice when things aren’t going right they’re
Our team doesn’t have practices over break so I do have that
always there to pick you up and tell you everything is okay and
time to relax and recover from past tournaments and practices
to move on to the next play. Teamwork wins games especially
however I still do some small workouts.
for my team at the UNC club basketball tournament a few weeks ago. We were losing to NC State throughout almost the whole game but we stayed together as a team and as a result we came back and beat them.
13
“A PAINFUL DISC AND AND NUMBED FINGERED THROWS ARE JUST A PART OF AN ULTIMATE PLAYER’S SEASON
”
14
WOMEN’S ULTIMATE As fall sets in and colder months arrive,
a challenge. Moving chilled fingers is
to stay warm on the sidelines. Other girls
a major concern begins to take hold in
not only difficult but also painful and
keep hand warmers in their pockets. One
an Ultimate player’s thoughts: How will I
there is little one can do to avoid this
of the team members learned to throw
not lose my hands to frostbite this year?
problem. Wearing gloves is an option
and catch with her big winter gloves on.
The Ultimate season goes until mid-Nov
but not a good one. Normal gloves make
Keeping warm while playing Ultimate
and then picks back up late January. Here
throwing and catching almost impossible,
is a challenge and often unsuccessful.
in the mountains, that means about three
and many Ultimate players find even high
However, frozen fingers are a sacrifice
months of freezing temperatures and
quality sport gloves to be a nuisance.
we are willing to make for the game we
another two to three months of very cold
Keeping your pockets nice and cozy
love to play.
weather. Many winter nights, the team
with hand warmers or bringing along
finds that the outdoor practice fields
a thermos of hot herbal tea can help
are frozen; the soil twinkling under the
keep a player’s hands from becoming
floodlights as frozen moisture crystals
dangerously chilled; however, a painful
grow from the ground. While we can all
disc and number fingered throws are just
bundle up in sweaters, thick socks, and
a part of an Ultimate player’s season.
hats, an Ultimate player’s hands are left
Members of the Women’s Ultimate
exposed to the frigid air. Not only are
team at App have a variety of different
their hands left exposed, but they are
strategies to stay warm during winter
also expected to catch, throw, and D the
practices and tournaments. Some of the
disk with frozen fingers! This is quite
teammates bring blankets and sleep bags
WRITTEN BY: CORRIE MALONE, SECRETARY
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SNOWBOARDING TEAM WRITTEN BY MIRANDA MARTIN, SECRETARY
A
s the weather begins to get colder and the leaves start falling, the Appalachian State Snowboard Team is getting hyped up for another season of shredding. The race locations have been decided and the Southeast Conference is going to be south for more races than usual. The 2015 race season even includes two boardercross events! Boardercross is an event that pits four to six snowboarders against
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one another as they navigate their way through a fast, narrow course that features jumps, drops and the occasional collision. Each racer has the same goal: be the first to pass the finish line. This is something that we are especially stoked about since our team makes it to Nationals every year pumped for boardercross, yet we often struggle against the competition due to our lack of experience on a boardercross
course. This will be a great way for our team to gain the experience needed and to prepare for our larger competitions. Not to mention that boardercross is a blast! The ASU Snowboard Team has been known in the past to kill in boardercross despite all odds, so I know that with that extra bit of practice we can dominate the competition. All in all, our team is just ready for winter to begin, for the slopes
to open, and to hear those everfamous words at the start-gate, “RACER READY?” Inside Look at the 2015 Schedule Massanutten, VA Saturday 1/10, 3pm- Slopestyle Sunday 1/11, 9am- Giant Slalom Sugar Mountain, NC Monday 1/19, 9am- Giant Slalom Bryce, VA Saturday 1/24, 9am- Giant Slalom Sunday 1/25, 9am- Giant Slalom App Ski Mtn, NC Saturday 1/31, 9am- Slopestyle Sunday 2/1, 9am- Boarder Cross!
Beech Mtn, NC Saturday 2/7, 9am- Giant Slalom Sunday 2/8, 9am- Boarder Cross! Regionals: Wintergreen, VA2/19-2/21 Nationals: Mount Bachelor, Oregon- 3/1-3/7 Don’t forget to come support us at our NC races
“THE APP STATE SNOWBOARDING TEAM IS GETTING HYPED UP FOR ANOTHER SEASON OF SHREDDING
” 17
WRITTEN BY DIXON STYRES, PRESIDENT
A
SKI TEAM
s with any sport, training for a new season starts way before your first competition, and even for the ski team, months before the first snow begins to fall. In preparation for the 2014 – 2015 season, the Appalachian
State University Ski Team Faculty Advisor, Dr. Witold Kosmala, conducted a classroom session regarding proper ski technique. There was a full house including the upcoming ASU Ski Team, ASU faculty, and current ski instructors. Dr. Kosmala covered a wide variety of topics ranging from the importance of foot articulation to how to properly initiate a turn. He catered to both auditory and visual learners through lecturing, picture montages, class participations, and demonstrations. The Ski team has had the joy of hosting Dr. Kosmala for several years while he has worked towards his goal of becoming a level 3 ski instructor and has become a great friend of the team and continues to support and the team. In the first drill, the class was instructed to walk around three cones in the shape of a gate. Simple enough, right? After everyone completed this seemingly easy task, the group discussed the correlation between this drill and gates. “Some people were tipped and some people leaned into the turn,” some observed. Others noticed that everyone was walking at different paces and everyone’s heads were looking in different directions. Dr. K summarized our discussion by instructing each skier to initiate turns with the inside leg. He further demonstrated how this leads one’s body to follow in the turn. To follow up, lean downhill and drive each
“
turn with the front of the skis. “Turning with the back of the skis is like trying to drive a shopping cart backwards – one little turn will put your
TRAINING FOR A NEW SEASON STARTS WAY BEFORE YOUR FIRST COMPETITION
18 18
skis out of control,” he explained. The next demonstration revealed how stress on the body can weaken one’s performance. To illustrate this, one participant was asked to hunch over jumping back and forth and the second participant was upright in an athletic position jumping back and forth. The participant that was hunched over, slowly began to rise proving that the more athletic of a stance, the better performance. This relates to
”
skiing through flex and extension. Dr. Kosmala also discussed foot articulation, the importance of pole plants, and carving. Overall, his instructions were notable and they excited the class for the upcoming season! Now all we need is suitable weather to allow us to take it to the slopes!
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CYCLING TEAM
WRITTEN BY CRAIG STEWART, SECRETARY
W
elcome to the wonderful
aerodynamic piece of carbon with two wheels.
the stem and putting your head as close to
world of cycling. By now
Be sure to then inform them that the intended
the handlebars as possible.
you’ve figured out that 25
use is mountain biking, very important. They
miles isn’t actually THAT
should have some clunker to fit the bill.
Time to hit the trail! Show up to a local
far. You’ve also started to check out Strava
Afterwards purchase “aero” bars, an “aero”
mountain bike group ride. Make sure to
and maybe you’ve won a few KOM’s (if you
helmet (the longer, pointier, and dimple-ier
insist on leading, mainly because the “aero”
don’t know about KOM’s, you’re not a cyclist).
the better), and a full body “aero” skin-suit.
advantage will make you fast through all of
All is good and fair, except now there is an
Make sure the “aero” skin-suit is flamboyant
the rock gardens. Trust me, everyone will let
elephant in the room. That Schwin from the
with as many sponsors as possible. These
you lead because they can tell that you’re
80’s is seriously holding you back! And the
items are trivial in price ranging from $100-
serious about this. Show off your stuff through
clothes that you used to wear to the gym
$300 (you’re trying to go pro, right?).
the woods and make sure to bring a dog (dogs
just keep flapping in the wind. It’s time to get
are “aero” by nature so they can keep up fine).
faster. But how? The answer isn’t training; in
Moving on, put on all your equipment and
If you ever get tired be sure to draft the other
fact, I bet most pros don’t train at all. However,
attain a leaf blower. Make sure your helmet
riders and stay as close to their back tire as
every pro has $10,000 bikes and the ability to
is properly adjusted, *pro tip* the pointy side
possible, but make sure they realize this is
become “aero.” Today I will teach you how to
goes behind. Since its fall, this is the perfect
an “aero” technique. Most mountain bikers
become “aero” so that you can also become
time to set up a leaf blower “aero”- tunnel, just
aren’t pro and won’t realize all of these “aero”
pro. I will demonstrate “aero” where it is most
have a friend point the leaf blower at you and
techniques.
important… on a mountain bike!
proceed to toss leaves at your face. If all the equipment is up to par there should only be
Congratulations, a pro contract is coming
Let’s get started, the first thing you need is
residual pieces of detritus in your mouth. Use
your way as long as you keep shredding those
equipment. I’d recommend setting aside
this leaf blower to find your optimum “aero”–
group rides and stealing all those Strava
$4,000 for a bike (before upgrades). You
position. The optimum position includes
KOM’s!!
want to go into a shop and ask for their most
keeping your hands close together next to
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/
WRITTEN BY IAN MCNEILL, CLUB SPORTS EXECUTIVE
This week’s Club Sports Council
This week we also voted
Community service committee
Also, each executive detailed
meeting was a grand time full
on National Championship
has committed 14 Fridays to the
their personal destination for
of updates, votes and great
Reimbursement. Of the three
Western Youth Network. Budget
the semester. Ian’s destination
committee work!
teams that initially submitted
point committee looked at other
will be improving officer
i n fo r m a t i o n , C l u b S p o r t s
schools’ requirements for awards
conferences, Philicia’s will be
Team highlights include word
reimbursed two of those teams,
and finalized the requirements.
improving the developmental
from swimming that they
Volleyball and Cycling. However,
Team Unity is hosting dodgeball
tier and Katherine’s is the
are having a home meet this
Tyler Grandis, the Snowboarding
tournament Nov. 19th – 8 o’clock
integration of Club Sports with
Saturday at 12:30pm in the SRC.
President was on hand to
in the varsity gym. Registration
AppSync.
If anyone can volunteer they
suggest that we review that
will be on AppSync. Publicity/
would love to have you there.
information and make sure his
Fundraising committee is
Finally, we closed with updates
Cycling will be participating
team was not in fact eligible
working on Comeback Shack
from Erin, Chelsea, Tyler and
in the Mountain Bike National
as well. In an overwhelming
fundraiser. They are also
Alyssa. The take home message
Championship
this
majority vote, the council
working out details to get
was: TURN IN STUFF ON TIME.
weekend at Beech Mountain.
elected to table the vote until
bumper stickers made with Club
And finally, the Women’s Rugby
the next meeting when we have
Sports logo on it.
team is hosting the best rugby
more information.
held
tourney in the southeast,
Meeting was adjourned and the final tally on motions
In an executive decision,
and seconds stood at: Men’s
Rucktoberfest!!! Bring all
In committees this week a lot of
Snowboard and Men’s Lacrosse
Ultimate with 2, Equestrian with
your friends out to watch the
hard work was put in, as always,
were fined one budget point
1, and Snowboard with 1.
throwdown of the semester as
and it seems that the committee
from their 2014-2015 yearly
14 women’s rugby teams fight
projects for the semester
total because they did not turn
for the title of champion.
will shortly come to fruition.
in a voided check on time.
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