Tag Archives: Intramural

Intramural Volleyball: Trying New Things

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Let me just start this one by saying, I’m not very athletic. I’m pretty skinny and I guess you could say I’m toned but not extremely strong or coordinated so when it comes to playing sports at McDaniel, I’m not the first guy on anyone’s mind. I swam in highschool and I’ve always been a decently fast runner so I don’t mean to make myself out to be some kind of loser, this is just to say that Tebow or Jordan. That said, one thing I have really enjoyed at McDaniel are the intramural sports.

Joining my fraternity has been helpful in this field since it gave me a nice gateway into intramurals, this spring especially since I finally have a softball and indoor soccer team that I can just be a part of without signing up. I’ve played all of these sports before though, what’s new this Spring to me is indoor volleyball. I had no idea it was such a fun sport! Having never played before, I wasn’t sure how it would go, but the fraternity had their first game today and I did not do as terribly as I had expected.

Our first game was against the Phi Delt fraternity. They were pretty good. They snagged a girl from the volleyball team to play for them (kind of cheating in my mind but whatever), and then they had another guy on their team who was pretty good. We were better. We lost our first game after staying tied for most of it, then won the second by a landslide. It all came down to the third game in which we had kept a decent lead on them until they snuck up on us in the end and won. The second game was against Phi Kapp fraternity and they crushed us. It might have been that we were tired, or that they were really good, but either way we didn’t stand a chance.

It was a great learning experience though, especially for a non-athlete like me. My brothers taught me how to set, how to block, and a number of volleyball terms that I wouldn’t have ever known otherwise. It was a great bonding experience even if we lost and it’s nice to know that even if you might not be the best at something, there’s still time to learn at McDaniel.

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Avoiding the muffin top

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Now that we’re getting into the second week of school, I’ve already noticed a significant drop in numbers at the gym. Resolutions fade, the wind is blowing, and bed is warm. I get it.

In order to combat my natural urge to hibernate starting around Thanksgiving and ending when I can wear short sleeves, I put myself in a position where I absolutely can’t skip working out. For me, this position is the track team. I go because I love my teammates, want to stay in shape for cross country, and know that I will be held accountable if I don’t show up.

There are some people who have the dedication and drive to roll out of bed each morning, do a self-designed work out, and get great results. I admire those people deeply, but I am not one of them. If you’re like me, the key to maintaining fitness lies in finding what you love to do and finding a community of people who share that love.

Besides organized sports teams, you can find this community through intramurals and classes at the gym. Intramurals are offered year round, and I know from running by heated debates on the intramural soccer field that they take it pretty seriously. Additionally, there are all sorts of night classes offered through the gym that can help you add some regularity to your workout schedule. While some staples include Zumba and Body Combat, this semester a kickboxing night class and yoga class will be offered. Such activities require a fee, but it is much less than what you would pay at a typical gym.

Also, let’s not forget gym classes! We are required to participate in four gyms throughout our time at McDaniel, but I have friends that sign up for four per semester. What better way to hold yourself accountable for working out than to work out for a grade, right?

None of us want to watch a muffin top sag over our jeans as the semester unfolds. If you’re in an exercise lull, consider the various ways to get involved with an existing community of people like yourself. When you know that you’re going to see friends and improve your fitness, you have every reason to get out of bed and make that trek to practice, to the gym, or to the field.

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Intramural Sports

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McDaniel College is home to 24 Division III athletic sports, all part of the Centennial Conference. But we are also home to 11 intramural sports that I would argue are just as competitive, if not more so.

Several of my friends play on an intramural football team. While they always acted intense about playing time and uniforms for each week, I always took their comments as boys being boys. However, I finally went out to a game this past weekend. They played under the lights and my roommates and I had been promising we’d check it out before the season was over.

I was surprised how how legitimate the game was. Although it was flag football so there was no need for pads or helmets and there was no tackling, the boys all played really intense and followed the rules a lot more closely than I would have guessed.

My roommates and some of the boys are getting a team together for an intramural volleyball tournament on Halloween night. I think that intramural sports are a great way to get active and have fun with friends. And having that intramural champions t-shirt at the end of the season makes you the envy of a lot of people on campus.

There are a lot of intramural sports to check out, including floor hockey, basketball, and softball. So if you’re not ready to commit to a division 3 sport but you’re not ready to give up your high school sports, consider playing intramural and get the best of both worlds.

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Intramurals at McDaniel

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If you love sports but did not make a McDaniel team (or told your parents you didn’t make it just because you didn’t want the hassle) intramurals are a fun, low-commitment way to stay active. Each season has a number of options, each very popular in their respective times. The fall semester has soccer, flag football, golf, and floor hockey, while the spring semester sees basketball, kickball, badminton, kickball, indoor soccer, volleyball, softball, and my personal favorite dodgeball. Though it is just a one day tournament, intramural dodgeball is the most enjoyable of all the intramural sports.

Among my friends, everyone takes turns organizing teams for different intramurals. This increases everyone’s sense of involvement, while also making sure no one has to take on too much responsibility throughout the year. It’s fun also because, generally, the one who chooses to organize is very passionate about the sport and will lead us to victory. My friend Brandon was the excited organizer of our dodgeball team.

My friends and I named our team “Average Joe’s” in honor of the movie dodgeball. Though there was no requirement for team uniforms, my friends and I went to Michael’s and picked up a few ugly green and white striped tank-tops and some black headbands. Between our makeshift uniforms and irrepressible spirit, we were ready for the win. Old Gill Gym had been divided in two by the drop-down nets, and we were immediately thrown into a preliminary match on the far side against one of the best teams. We lost. Horribly. We played another game and won.

The next hour proceeded like this until the eliminations began. We made it to the semi-finals and then lost to the clearly superior team we had dubbed the “Purple Cobras” (in honor of the movie). I remember this intramural fondly because it was a chance for my friends and I to get together and laugh at ourselves.

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