By Avery Martin
Contributor
Women’s club soccer played just one game last semester, but their biggest accomplishments are not on the field. Running a team with limited resources is what makes the group stand out.
Emily Sousa, a junior sociology major, is the club president. She first joined the club in the 2023 fall semester. With less than 10 members and no scheduled games, she felt the need to help the club become more competitive. Since then, she has recruited double their starting amount of players.
“I was starting from bottom up. I went to two recruitment events over the summer before the first week of school started. I did the Involvement Fair for the fall and this spring. Now we basically have a group that can play games. We have like 20 girls,” Sousa said.
In a much less formal and competitive environment than the official collegiate sports teams, club sports offer students a chance to play the sport they enjoy while focusing less on results and more on the friendships made. Sousa says that is the best part of the club for her.
“I honestly really enjoyed being back in an atmosphere where all the girls genuinely liked hanging out with each other and I wanted to make sure that atmosphere stayed as I was running it. I think the most important part of soccer, or any sport, really, is that you like the people you’re playing with,” Sousa said.
Hannah McGuire, a junior sport management major, is the vice president of the club. She only joined last semester, but the supportive and welcoming environment has made an impact in her life.
“I love meeting people from different types of backgrounds, ethnicities, nationalities, but also the personalities. I love being friends with people that have no experience whatsoever because I was in the same boat. I love having friends that know a lot about the sport, so I can learn from them,” McGuire said.
Lauren Nadeau, a junior healthcare studies major, also believes the most important part of the club sport atmosphere is not found in results but in the bonds.
“It’s very open and welcoming of everyone. Everyone’s very open with each other and we always want more girls to join,” Nadeau said.
However, the team does face issues that traditional collegiate sports do not. The responsibility of finding a coach has fallen on Sousa and McGuire. Ashley Wright, a former DI player, now holds the position but hiring her was a difficult process. She is the third coach in the past three semesters.
“We started off with a female coach, she was doing great, and she had to leave. Then we had a male coach, and he’s working on graduate school, so he’s very busy and we couldn’t have him. We actually ended up with one of the former players. She used to be on the Central soccer team, and she switched over to club, and now she’s our coach officially for this season,” Nadeau said.
