The basketball court is often full of pickup games, some more serious than others. Three on three. Five on five. Full court. Half court. Periodically players will come in to hit a volleyball over the net.
But starting Oct. 5, the bleachers were full as 16 our of 18 indoor soccer teams played their first games, kinking a ball around the court rather than shooting it into a basket or over a net as they did on their round of games last night.
Parker Farrell, a sophomore in athletic training, said, “I wanted to play because of friends and the love of the sport.”
Farrell and the other athletic trainers he works with formed a team for indoor soccer.
Farrell said, “The trainers made a team because we all wanted to be involved with others.”
Timmy Young, a sophomore in computer science, said, “Indoor is a great way to get involved, and I love playing the sport.”
Young and Elam Lazo, a sophomore in nursing, joined a team with other friends.
Lazo said, “I love playing soccer, and what better way to do that than with friends.”
All games take place on the basketball courts in the Bruce and Graciela Redwine Student Wellness Center center, with boundary rules and referees.
Farrell said, “the court is nice to play on, but I don’t agree with some of the rules and boundaries of the court.”
Young said, “the court is a little too small to play on, you can’t run with the ball really, and passing can be harder at times.”
Each team registered is required to play with two women on the team.
Farrell said, “It’s great that the sport is mixed, and I do try to get the women involved into the game.”
To help get the women involved, a goal scored by a woman is worth two points, while a goal from a man is worth only one.
Soccer is the most popular sport in the world, which could be a reason for the number of registered teams this year for indoor soccer.
Farrell said, “There are so many teams because soccer is a very popular sport, and a lot of people wanted to be involved.”
With 18 teams registered, everybody will not play every team, they are broken up into groups, which then split off into playoffs.
Lazo said, “Soccer is a beautiful sport, I am not surprised so many people are registered to play.”
