Balancing school work and sports can be a difficult task. For some it may be overwhelming while for others, it can actually be something that helps to keep them focused.
Swim team member Isabella Badolato says she could not imagine school without being a part of a team. Her team means a lot to her and they are there to help each other out.
“Being dedicated to swimming helps me to stay on track in school and keeps me motivated to do well in the classroom. I always find a balance in between,” Badolato said.
Finding balance seems to be key. Once one achieves that balance, playing a sport can actually be beneficial to their college experience.
Todd walker, junior biology major, thinks that his sport actually enhances his education.
“I think it makes me more dedicated to my school work. It has taught me time management and forces me to stay on top of everything with a strict training regimen,” Walker said.
Brooke Hagan, sophomore education major adjusted quickly to the student-athlete life even as a freshmen.
“Being a part of a wonderful team motivates me to do the work. I definitely am pushed to get better grades when I am in season,” Hagan said.
Some people take on the difficult task of being dual-sport athlete. Playing two sports and keeping a high GPA is an extremely challenging task.
For alumni Breaghann Smith, having overlap- ping seasons was at times, too much to handle.
“I even considered dropping one of my sports at one point because I was feeling so overwhelmed but I knew I would regret that decision in the long run,” Smith said.
“While both sports were in-season there were some days that I had three practices (two for swimming, one for soccer), an occasional
weightlifting session, 2-3 classes to attend and my on-campus job shift(s),” Smith said. “Many days I would leave my dorm at 6 a.m. and I wouldn’t return again until 9pm to start my homework.”
When Smith found the balance and dedicated so many hours into both school, soccer and swimming it made life for her a little bit easier.
“I think when both my sports were in-season I would say, for the most part, I was more on top of my schoolwork compared to the offseason,” Smith said.
Being a dual-athlete was something Smith will always cherish in her time at Cabrini.
“I am happy to say that I was able to participate on the soccer team and swim team all four years and still manage to do well in school,” Smith said. “It was difficult, but the experience was worth it, and I would do it all over again if I could.”
Besides the long practices, attending lifting and busy school schedules, traveling is one of the hardest aspects of being a college athlete. A lot of effort needs to be put into time management.
Tina Melchiorre, a dedicated swimmer, puts a lot of thought into her school work as well as her sport.
“It gets tough when we have a travel meet where we may have to miss class, it is difficult to make sure all the work gets done because all our time is spent on the pool deck and mentally preparing for the meet,” Melchiorre said.
Learning to manage schoolwork and sports at the same time is key in being a successful college student.
“After three years of being a student-athlete there are still new things to learn about managing school and sports but it can be done,” Melchiorre added.
