Written By Janie Harris
With a new school year comes a new opportunity to get involved with intramural sports.
Piedmont’s intramural sports have recently gone through some changes. Intramurals have transformed its single softball game in to a league that plays for a championship throughout the month of Sept.
Junior nursing major, Mary Kate Rushton said: “I love that softball is more organized. It gives us a chance to really compete and have fun.”
Rushton participated in the most recent game of the softball league. She decided to get involved because she thought it would be a fun way to do something on campus and meet new people.
Nevertheless, there are more benefits of participating in intramurals. Denyse Vincent, the Recreational Services Director and Fitness Center Coordinator for Piedmont College, said that it is a fun way to get some exercise in without really feeling like you are exercising. It also helps you get to know the community around you.
When asked about what someone can get out of playing intramural sports, Vincent said, “They can get a sense of our campus.”
And all you have to do is sign-up in Nielsen Dining Hall and sign a waiver before you begin playing. But some people don’t know that intramurals is open to anyone on Piedmont’s campus. Professors, graduate assistants, and even President Mellichamp are invited to participate. But to get involved in certain sports, like the softball league, you have to sign up to be on a team. If you don’t have a group of people to join your team, you can be a free agent. When players get to the field, intramurals will assign the free agents to different teams.
“Don’t feel like you can’t play if you don’t have a team,” said Vincent.
Still the softball league is not the only change. Vincent noticed that students playing intramural sports would collect multiples of the same t-shirt throughout the year, so she decided that the awards needed an upgrade. Now intramural champions could win anything from a Piedmont College fleece blanket to Piedmont themed cell phone accessories, and receiving a t-shirt is still an option.
This week, because the softball field will be hosting a high school tournament, intramurals is hosting a beach volleyball competition. Throughout the year, they plan to give students the chance to participate in a variety of other sports. Some may include ultimate frisbee, dodge ball, capture the flag, and possibly even a twister tournament. Still Vincent explained that if a student wants to see another sport played, intramurals is open to suggestions.
To make one of these suggestions or to find out more about a specific event, visit the intramural sports’ Facebook page.
And if you missed the softball league’s sign-ups, you might have to wait next time to play, but you can always watch.
“We encourage people to come and cheer on their favorite team,” said Vincent.