For most athletes competitive sports end after high school, as only a lucky few are able to turn their prep school sports accomplishments into a college athletic career.
Thanks to LSU intramural and club sports, athletic careers do not have to end with the beginning of college life.
The spring intramural sports schedule is just starting to heat up with basketball season kicking off its schedule Sunday night and registration for softball opening Monday. Soccer registration will begin next week and racquet sports will start in March.
Intramural sports offer a variety of leagues for individuals interested in competition. Teams can register in men’s, women’s or co-ed leagues. Members of the Greek community can also sign up for sorority or fraternity leagues.
Teams playing intramural sports in the fall semester will be able to access their schedules online at the LSU Recreational Center’s Web site, www.lsu.edu/recsports.
“We started that in the fall of last year,” said LSU Intramural Coordinator Brad Wilson. “Teams can see their schedules, records, winning percentage, who’s in the Top 10 and the game of the day.”
For those LSU students interested in joining a more permanent team, LSU’s sports clubs offer a wide range of athletic teams from rugby to jujutsu.
“We’ve got 23 club sports [at LSU],” said Sports Clubs Coordinator Chris Landry. “There are different competitive sports and more individual sports like martial arts.”
One of the most active club sports in the spring is the LSU Lacrosse Club. Lacrosse spends most of the fall semester practicing in preparation for their regular season in the spring.
After switching to the Lone Star Alliance Conference last season, the lacrosse team posted a 4-6 record. Matt Shearer was named as an All-Lone Star Alliance player and Andrew Driscoll earned Honorable Mention honors.
This season the lacrosse club has gotten off to a rough start, falling to Texas A&M and Texas in their first two contests.
“It’s been tough so far,” said club president Thomas Laing. “Our first two games were against two of the toughest teams in our conference, so we’re looking to rebound.”
Laing also said that anyone interested in lacrosse is welcome to join the team.
“We’re pretty much an open club,” Laing said.
The Lacrosse team will return to action Feb. 21 against Houston at 1 p.m. at the Natatorium Fields.