NU students hoping for spring intramurals

By Kyle Blaikie
Norwich Guidon Staff Writer

When Sean Maher thinks of spring, he wants the snow to melt, just like many others who go to school in this northern environment. However, his motives are a little different than others'.

"Hopefully, the snow will melt," he said. "We want to start the softball intramural season, which we were unable to do last year due to the snow being so bad."

Maher is Norwich's student intramural director, who is hoping for a better spring season than last year.

With the end of the winter intramural sports (basketball and hockey), more students may get involved as the season and the weather improve.

"Last year, we were having trouble because of afternoon PT for the ROTC branches," said Maher, 22, a senior criminal justice major from Rindge, NH.

"Although some kids would sign up to play, they would go to their ROTCs," he said. "Sometimes, we had, like, four players, and they had to forfeit the games."

Lack of interest is not the only factor that could bring this year's season down. Weather plays a critical part according to Erick Divenuti, 22, a senior criminal justice major from Haverhill, Mass.

"Last year, I am not sure if they got to play anything, because the snow melted so late in the season," said Diventi, the corps officer in charge of intramurals.

According to Aezed Raza, 25, senior computer science major from Palo Alto, Ca, attendance is the "biggest problem." Getting people to know where and when intramurals are and where and when to sign up your team," Raza said.

When having such a tough time with attendance, "there has been some talk about making them mandatory, " Raza said. Dr. Chandler Stowell, director of student activities, intramurals, and recreational sports, said they would like to make it mandatory, "but we only want people to play."

The administration stepped into intramurals in the beginning of that year in order to try and change the way teams are put together.

"I think we had more participation the second half of the season," Divinuti said. They changed the way it was run, so you had to play by your company and battalion, with the company intramurals officer.

Colonel McKean wanted it that way, but then we went back to our way, with having you and your friends picking a team and playing," Divinuti said. "We were doing it that way, but it just didn't work out."

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