A juicy class project
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ORANGE JOURNALISM A juicy class project |
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Gooooooooooooooooooaaaaaaaaaaaaaaaal! If Futbol, or Soccer as we call it in America, is your game and you're looking to play, you're in luck. Students from all over campus are coming out on Thursdays and Fridays for pick-up soccer games at the A.S. House. "Its to build community with people on your floor, or in your dorm, or on campus," said Michael Balangitao, a Senior majoring in Kinesiology and organizer of the Thursday afternoon games. Michael decided to start the pick-up games when he became bored with exercising in the gym. As an R.A. in Campus Village, he thought it would be a good way to bring people together within the dorms and get them outside sharing a love for Soccer. "Running on the treadmills in the gym is boring, and what else do you have, running around campus? This way we can get out and have fun and still work out," he said. The pick-up games take place Thursday afternoons from 4PM to 6PM on the lawn next to the A.S. House. All the games are Co-Ed and open to anyone who wants to play. The games are competitive but friendly. Most players don't even keep score, and the play is spirited without being rough and physical. 14 people came out to play the first week, more the second week, and the popularity of the games is expected to rise. Additional games are held on Fridays from 6PM to 7PM. "Its great because you get people from all over, from all kinds of different countries out playing," said Yao, one of the organizers of the Friday games. Yao helped start the games a year and a half ago with other members of the campus Sport Club. The Friday games are more popular and typically draw twice the crowds of the Thursday games, though the Thursday games just started this year. All of the organizers hope both days games continue to attract more and more Soccer fans. "People from all different places come to play with us," said Jorge Duque, a Junior majoring in Materials Science Engineering and organizer of the Friday games. "We started with a team from the Business school that wanted to play, then met all these other guys. I'm friends with a lot of them now, we hang out a lot now." "Soccer is the international sport. You get guys like me who are Asian, and guys from South America and all over. You can learn something about other cultures and how they play, and interact with all these people you've never met," added Yao. Many of the participants have played competitively in the past, but now its just about the game. There are no set teams or schedules, players are assigned as they show. Teams of 7 to 10 players are organized and the players rotate in, and if there is an odd number of teams, the teams rotate, playing 10 minute games against each other. The organizers plan to keep the games going as long as there is interest from the students and are inviting anyone and everyone who loves soccer to come out. "Its about getting the soccer fans out and having fun," said Balangitao. "Everybody's welcome, just come play." Back to Orange Journalism Home Page Orange Journalism: |
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