How do WCC sports deal with player shortages?

by WILLOW SYMONDS
Staff Writer

The number of WCC student-athletes are down this semester. While the amount of players in their leagues fluctuate with the seasons, the women’s club teams in particular have a shortage.

“This fall semester, students were excited to get back to playing again and many of our sports were outdoors,” director of athletics, Matt Lucas, said over the phone, “as opposed to the indoor training that our club sports are doing now.”

WCC’s in-person sports leagues returned in Fall 2021, after canceling their sport programs for a year and half due to COVID-19. Only the dance team and Men’s and Women’s Cross-Country continued as their practice sessions moved to Zoom, while the other teams went on hiatus.

Every year, returning students help Lucas recruit more players to the teams. After 18 months of dealing with Covid, those core groups of students were gone.

Still, new student-athletes are joining. Katie Henderson, a pre-engineering student, joined Women’s Club Soccer in the fall of 2021. Her coach appointed her for team captain the same semester.

“I [first heard of] the soccer team when I was looking around the school website and found the campus connect page,” Henderson said. “Then I saw the team and figured I would give it a try.”

She believes that, ideally, the team should have at least eleven players, like they had in the fall. This would give them the option to use substitutes and take breaks when needed.

The Women’s Indoor Soccer League currently has eight players. They often play with and against male players due to their low numbers.

However, not all WCC sports teams have been struggling to find players. Before the pandemic, the Men’s Volleyball team had five players, but this season, they have nine. The Women’s Volleyball team shows the same pattern, going from nine players to twelve.

Matt Lucas stresses that numbers change every season and that the student body itself has an impact on how many try-out for WCC sports. This is true for both the womens and mens teams.

“Over the years, [we’ve had] some instances where a mens team is looking for some additional numbers,” Lucas said. “In general, most [colleges] see a difference in the number of students who take part in women’s sports than in men’s sports.”

Other colleges are experiencing some challenges as well. Like WCC, Oakland Community College delayed sports last year and returned this fall. Their Women’s Basketball coach, Josh Lees, says that his team has had four to five isolations due to COVID-19 outbreaks.

“Trying to get the players engaged can be difficult,” Lees told The Washtenaw Voice, “but in terms of the amount of players, we’re one of the top teams.”

Lees remains hopeful that more student-athletes will join once the pandemic has an end in sight.

The WCC coaches and athletic faculty, such as Matt Lucas, now focus on rebuilding their sports programs and finding those core students to recruit and return.

Katie Henderson thinks that WCC should advertise their sports more so that students know they can join, even if they have never done athletics before. She also explains that it is no great time commitment, the coaches are flexible and understanding, and that the players are excited to meet new people and play.

“My favorite memory of the team has to be either our team bonding night at Wiard’s this fall or warming up before the games,” Henderson said. “As the season goes on, everyone knows the routine of how we’ll warm up, and that’s when things get fun. Everyone is comfortable with each other, so we talk and hang out as we get ready for the game.”

Coach Lucas said his favorite part of working with student-athletes is, “seeing the positive impact that […] the Wolfpack family has on so many of them. The interactions with students are amazing, as many of them continue to stay in contact with coaches, past teammates, and the Wolfpack program.”

WCC continues to rebuild their sports programs after the height of the pandemic.

Women’s soccer, basketball, and softball are looking for additional players. If students are interested in taking part, reach out by email (wccwolfpack@wccnet.edu) or stop by the athletics office in the Student Center.

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