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Club soccer finds competitive edge |
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Tuesday, 05 February 2008 |
 The Appalachian soccer club practice in the fog at Kidd Brewer Stadium Monday evening. Photo by Derek DeSha
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by ASHLEY DAVIS
Sports Reporter
What’s a team to do when temperatures dip in the teens and their main field lies outside in the snow?
The Appalachian State University men’s club soccer team has been forced to improvise most days when the snow or rain invades its playing space.
Instead, the team has taken to practicing in the Student Recreation Center, away from the wind and weather, yet also away from turf where its games actually take place.
“It takes some getting used to,” said president Wade A. Carlton, a
junior industrial technology major. “The guys seem to transition well
though, and it’s good to have that flat surface so that you can work on
your touches a little better and practice passes.”
The team does not start its spring season until Feb. 9, at which point
the team will play approximately six games throughout the following
months.
Many of the team’s opponents do not face the difficulties of Boone weather that often cuts into Appalachian’s practice time.
“Seventy-five percent of our games are played away this semester,”
Carlton said. “Every once in a while at [University North Carolina at
Charlotte] or Elon University will come up - the closer teams - but
mostly we’re on the road.”
While playing the majority of games on opponent’s fields, who have
better practice conditions available, sounds disadvantageous, team
member Chris Brooten disagrees.
“All of our players’ skill level is still there, so when we get out on
a bigger field in warmer weather where we will go to play, I think it
all comes back,” Brooten said.
In addition to practicing indoors as a team, the men also have another way of staying in condition.
“We’re always playing club soccer, but we also try to play intramural
as well,” Brooten said. “We get more game action, and I would say every
team has at least one of our club members on it.”
Since there is a cap on how many club members can play on each
intramural team, the majority of level AAA teams have men’s club soccer
members and some of the level AA teams also have club members. In order
for most of the team to play intramurals, the men join both co-ed and
men’s teams.
“It’s more fun if we see one of our [club teammates] on the other
team,” Brooten said of the competition on the intramural level. “We’ll
definitely play a little harder and try to give them a hard time.”
Although priority is given to varsity sports, the team is attempting to earn practice time at Kidd Brewer Stadium.
In addition to preparing the current team members for the spring
season, the team is also still in the process of recruiting new
interested students.
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