Finding your place in a new environment can be difficult for students, but playing a sport comes with an automatic, built-in family. But what happens when you decide to stop playing that sport? Do you lose all your friends? Do you lose your support system? Or do you find a new place?
The Wit interviewed four students who have made this transition. Athletics are time-consuming, so many of the students noted that they have not been previously involved in many things besides athletics on campus. Among those interviewed, they all say they have found their place after quitting the sport they knew and loved. Some made note that they now have time to work on themselves and be involved in more broadly on campus.
Ella Wiley
Photo of Ella Wiley. Photo taken by Elizabeth Rockwell.
Wiley is a junior elementary education major. She played soccer starting the spring semester of her freshman year after transferring until part of the way through her junior year.
“Now that I quit soccer,” Wiley said. “I’m 10 times happier. I can actually get my homework done before midnight. I can actually go hang out with friends and do stuff other than soccer. I can join clubs. I joined Delight. I can actually have a life instead of dreading going to practice or dreading going to a game because I know I’m just going to stand there.”
Caitlyn Renner
Renner is a junior speech-language pathology and audiology major. She played volleyball and ran track and field. She played volleyball until her junior year and track her freshman year of high school.
Photo of Caitlyn Renner. Photo taken by Elizabeth Rockwell.
“I really did have multiple groups I was friends with,” Renner said. “I was friends with commuters. I was friends with non-athletes. I was friends with athletes. I think that was sort of hard because you’re trying to make sure that they know you want to be friends with them because you’re always with the athletes.”
Renner had a slightly different experience than some athletes because she was already involved with two sports and other clubs on campus. Because of this, she noticed that cliques were very prevalent on campus.
“I think that’s something that Bluffton needs to work on,” Renner said. “Athletes on campus can be friends with non-athletes. It’s okay to not be with your team all the time.”
Madison Staton
Staton is a sophomore intervention specialist major. She played basketball at Bluffton for her freshman year.
“I’m an RA,” Staton said. “I’m in Delight. I am in BEO. I participate in intramurals. I just have extra time to do homework, and I feel like I have more time I can devote to myself in doing things for me rather than feeling like I need to meet others’ expectations.”
Haley Byrnes
Byrnes is a junior exercise science major. She played basketball at Bluffton until halfway through her sophomore year.
“I think [the team chemistry] is good now,” Byrnes said. ”Now I’m involved in a lot of clubs. I’m in the president’s ambassador club. My team is still basically my friend group. I’m in the multicultural club. I work with our athletic trainer, Kayla, here, so I work with the football team. I’m an athletic training aide, but they love to call me water girl.”
