Cauldron

Issue date: 5/15/07 Section: Sports & Clubs

Media Credit: Vivi Ayala A winning team Women's soccer has had winning seasons for three semesters in a row.

Women's soccer has had the longest streak of winning seasons among sport clubs during the past two years. Men's soccer cut its season short because of low attendance and scheduling conflicts. But men's soccer will become an intercollegiate sport next year, while the women's team remains a club.

According to Matt Prasifka, UST's interim athletic director, the University considers facilities, interest level, potential student involvement and financial costs when reviewing sport teams for accreditation by the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics. But club performance is not a factor. "The performance of a specific sport club is not one of the criteria that will be used to see which varsity sport is added in future years," Prasifka said.

Prasifka said that when the University selects a sport for varsity status, it should not be misinterpreted as an evaluation of the team's performance. He said that varsity athletics and sport clubs are separate programs and should be treated as such. "The idea is not to grow our current sport clubs into varsity programs," he said.

Women's volleyball became the University's first NAIA team last fall. Prasifka said he is pleased with the women's volleyball team's accomplishments. "The team was created in a very short time and throughout the year has represented [itself] and the University very well," he said.

In a Cauldron interview last September, Prasifka said that the next team to go intercollegiate would be a men's team to keep the sports program balanced. "A coach was recently hired for the men's soccer team and we are confident that, as he puts his team together, they will also be great representatives of the University," Prasifka said.

Women's Soccer Captain Yvonne Velasquez, a senior music and philosophy major, said her team should still be considered. "I definitely do think that our performance merits varsity status," Velasquez said. "Although it may not be one of the criteria, I believe it is very important to take our successes into consideration because it goes to show that we have the potential and dedication any varsity team requires."

Velasquez said that the team has been working hard to become an intercollegiate sport since she and her teammates revived the club three years ago. "Although it may not be next fall, I expect the women's soccer team will receive the recognition it deserves," she said.

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