Photos by Ralph Freso / Slideshow
Tianna Tucker was the only woman among men in the pickup kickball game. She approached the ball, kicked it real hard, and motored down the first-base line. Safe. She later scored with lightning speed around the bases.
The Grand Canyon University freshman beamed after crossing home plate. She really likes sports. “It teaches you determination and drive,” she said.
Tucker was among dozens of Welcome Week students running about Colter Field on Intramural Sports Field Night. They played kickball, flag football, cornhole and Spikeball and were introduced to the offerings of what school administrators say is one of the largest intramural programs in the country.
Last academic year, 13,320 students formed 1,760 intramural teams in 19 sports for contests held throughout the year on campus.
Among the most popular was flag football (1,316 participants), just shy of indoor volleyball (1,335), but one that interests Tucker the most.
She said she was among the first females to play the sport when they launched a women’s team at Mountain Pointe High School in Ahwatukee.
“I like how it’s a sport for comradery but it’s also inclusive. It’s for anyone, there are boys and girls who play,” she said, before running over to join the flag football game nearby.
Fall flag football teams for men, women and co-ed are forming, as are those for sand and indoor volleyball, 3-on-3 basketball, dodgeball, futsal, pickleball, softball and tennis. New this year is something called battleship, when teams try to swamp opponents’ boats in the pool, and wiffle ball.
A group of four freshmen friends from Lincoln, Nebraska, came to the fields eager to play as many sports as they can. They definitely want to start a team for sand volleyball and flag football.
“I played golf and football in high school, so I like competition. I like to have something on the line,” said Maguire Stanton, who with buddies Alex Beeman, Sam Svoboda and Landon Bondegard were filling out online forms to join up.
Intramurals create a sense of community and connect students, said Intramural Sports Manager Mike Fox. When students feel connected, it leads to better retention.
“They are bought in,” he said. “It’s also an outlet. Some students like reading in their free time, some like being competitive.”
Even these pickup games got competitive. One team of young men waiting on the sideline for their turn to take on the winning team were scouting their future opponents offense (“They throw it deep a lot”) and their defense (“You do a curl, and I will run behind you.”).
Noah Homer, a transfer junior, said that intramurals offer him the chance to continue playing sports that he loved in high school.
He had just burst down the field and caught a nifty pass in the flat.
Meanwhile, Tianna Tucker was on the women’s field, rushing the quarterback like her hair was on fire.
She got a fistful of flag, sacking the quarterback.
Grand Canyon University senior writer Mike Kilen can be reached at [email protected]
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