It’s that point in the fall where students are finally settling into their routines. While the fall athletes at Swarthmore College are launching into competitive conference play, spring athletes are easing into their non-traditional seasons. In women’s lacrosse, we call this “fall ball.”
Fall ball in the lacrosse world is another word for “off-season.” This means limited practices, competitions, and meetings with coaches. However, fall ball is so much more than just a few practices and lifts a week; this is when good habits and team culture are built in order to have a successful spring. To offer a glimpse into the season, I’ll walk you through a classic Wednesday in my life, from start to finish.
7:15 a.m. – I wake up to the sound of my alarm gradually getting louder, and I notice rays of sunshine peeking through the blinds of my dorm room. Sunlight this early leads me to believe it’s already going to be a great day. No practice last night means I’m feeling refreshed and ready to take on the day, or at least my walk up the hill. I pick up my phone and immediately scroll to my Google Calendar. The color-coded segments show me that today I have a three-hour thesis block in my lab, along with practice on Cunningham Field from 4:30 to 6:30 p.m.
8:00 a.m. – As I’m getting ready for the day, I hear the clinks of dishware through my door, and I join my roommates in making breakfast before class. We quietly go on to talk about what we have on deck for the day, as more of our roommates emerge and join us at the kitchen table. Many of my roommates are also teammates of mine, so the discussion eventually transitions to planning team weekend activities for after our Saturday morning practice. When our Saturdays aren’t filled with games (unlike in the spring), we still love spending time with our team as much as possible.
9:00 a.m. – It’s now time to begin the arduous walk from NPPR up to Singer’s developmental psychology lab, where I meet for my senior thesis. I work in the developmental psychology lab, where Professor Emily Foster-Hanson is overseeing my work on a research project that will culminate with my senior thesis paper. Today, I’m focused on presenting my research by designing a poster for the Sigma Xi poster session hosted by Swarthmore! Almost half of my team’s senior class is presenting summer research there next week, so it’s time to get cracking on the poster. Because I worked here at Swarthmore doing research this past summer, this project has been a labor of love for months now, so these next three hours go by quickly as I continue working.
12:30 p.m. – My lab shift comes to a close, and it’s time to walk down to Sharples for my first dining hall stop of the day. As I walk down the hill to meet up with my teammates for lunch, I read messages from our coaches while preparing to send announcements in the team group chat. Many of my teammates love to get out to the field as early as possible, so we send out equipment and field information as soon as we can. But, as I arrive at lunch, I slip my phone into my pocket, where it will remain for the next hour. I join my teammates at a back-right circle table (one of our favorites), and smile as my lunch becomes more hanging out with a side of Sharples specialties. Sharing meals with all my teammates, especially the underclassmen, is one of my favorite times of day.
1:30 p.m. – After lunch, I exit with some of my teammates to a corner booth in Commons, hoping to get some work done. While this time may seem passive, I value quiet time with them so much. We’re always there for each other if anyone has a homework question, or for a much-needed study break trip to Essie’s. About an hour in, a few of us grab a new candy from Essie’s to taste-test. The review goes over well, and I drop the leftover candy into my bag to save as pre-practice fuel.
3:30 p.m. – After enough work is done, a group of us mosey on over to the Fieldhouse to get ready for practice. It can get a little hectic at this point, as we need to make sure we have all the balls, cones, and other equipment necessary to practice. After we have all our stuff, we make the walk over from the Fieldhouse to Cunningham Field, where student-athletes in non-traditional seasons train. The smell of the grass, sound of the ball buckets rolling, and cheers I can hear from teammates who got to the field early are exactly what fall sounds like to me. I quickly lace up my cleats and have one more piece of Essie’s candy before practice starts.
6:15 p.m. – Our second practice of the week is officially over! As we circle up to cool down and stretch, our coaches announce this week’s recipient of the team effort award. These awards are given out in the offseason to recognize players who work especially hard that week. On our team, it’s especially important to get our practice habits down now, so we can continue to level up our play into the spring. After we cheer on this week’s winner, the coaches dismiss all players but the seniors.
6:30 p.m. – Don’t worry — we’re not in trouble. Our coaches like to meet with the senior class at least once a week to touch base on how everything’s going and give us necessary announcements for the week. We discuss this week’s lifts (which happen on Tuesday and Thursday), and the importance of practicing good recovery habits. While we only practice four days a week during fall ball, when factoring in lifts, our only true off-day is Sunday, so it’s important we encourage proper recovery to keep us strong and healthy all year. Additionally, our coaches pass on the information regarding our community service outing this upcoming weekend. Each year, our team volunteers at the Headstrong Foundation 5k that happens in the ville. We make note of what to tell our underclassmen, and are finally dismissed to grab dinner.
7:00 p.m. – Post-practice Sharples ranks pretty high on my list of on-campus meals, but this one doesn’t last too long because some of us want to stop by the men’s soccer game on the way home. Lots of my teammates, including myself, often work for the athletic department at games like these, but whenever we aren’t scheduled, we love cheering on our fellow athletes!
9:00 p.m. – By this time, my roommates and I are all clean and cozy in our apartment. The days usually end with us lounging around on the couches, trying to get some work done among the wonderful company of other friends who live nearby. This Wednesday night consisted of sharing some newly purchased Trader Joe’s snacks and discussing yet again what our team plans are for the weekend. As many conversations go since becoming seniors, the night dies down by us reminiscing on our favorite team memories from years past. So many of them happened on the weekends after practices with the team, whether they were trips to Juice Pod in a senior’s car or nights spent sitting around an NPPR apartment laughing at anything and everything. We eventually reluctantly say our goodnights, and I retire back to my bedroom to wind down.
10:30 p.m. – I go through my nighttime routine, which tonight includes laying out my clothes for tomorrow’s 8:00 a.m. lift. Half of our team lifts on Thursday morning, while the other half lifts that same afternoon. I’m already thinking about what themed playlist we’ll listen to at lift tomorrow (my personal favorite is our Pop Princess playlist). I quickly check my email, GroupMe, and messages before plugging in my devices for the night. After sending a few more messages, I set my alarm and lay my phone down on my nightstand. I quickly drift to sleep, excited to start a new day tomorrow!
