Becoming a first-year student-athlete in college is one of the hardest transitions for someone to make after high school. The increased responsibility, time management, and the commitments that are made to the school and the team can be difficult. But the class of 2024 faces the challenge of starting their college athletic careers in the middle of a pandemic. Six first-year athletes who were recruited at Viterbo spoke with the Lumen about their experience this year and how COVID-19 has affected their transitions into college athletics.
The transition to college is often difficult, moving-in just days before school, but some of the athletes had to cut their summers short to begin their college athletic careers. This is what soccer and track athlete Alexie Stephani had to do. Stephani is from Blaine, Minn., and was a track and soccer athlete at Spring Lake Park High school. When talking to Stephani about her experience thus far as a Viterbo athlete, she stated has fallen in love with the family culture on her teams. She made life–long connections through her sports and wouldn’t trade the experience for the world.
Her road to college athletics wasn’t easy due to the pandemic like every athlete this year. Stephani and her teammate on the track team Madison McGrane from Belle Plaine, Minn., both shared the same obstacle of not being able to fully connect with their teammates outside of practice. COVID-19 has made it almost impossible to get together with teammates outside of these scheduled practices. Neither of these athletes wanted to put their seasons or school year in jeopardy over a fun time.
The transition to being a college athlete means more much better time management and commitment, which is something Stephani and McGrane both struggled with coming in. Stephani came in doing two sports and mostly competing during the week, but in college, the majority of competitions have long road trips and are on weekends. McGrane has had a hard time adjusting to the extra time invested during the week since she is used to competing on the weekends. McGrane hasn’t let that stop her and had said that is one of the biggest motivators for her this year.
Another barrier for athletes was the long and rigorous scheduling of a college team. This is what Conley O’Keefe, a first-year from Milwaukee on the baseball team, was faced with coming into this season. He had the challenge of managing his academics with the demands of his baseball schedule. But he hasn’t let that stop him from enjoying his experience as an athlete. He has given his coaches and professors credit for pushing him to do his best in the classroom and on the field. He also discussed having his teammates there to help guide him through his first year.
O’Keefe has taken the pandemic as an opportunity to rehab and work on himself after tearing his ACL last year. The pandemic gave him the time he needed to rehab and get back on the field before the first semester of college. He never let the pandemic get to him, steadily working on his craft and trying to impress the coaching staff. At this point in his first year, O’Keefe feels like he has made this most of this unusual season.
The pandemic caused many of the athletes’ seasons to be paused during the middle of the semester. Dakota Mannel, from Onalaska, and Kristt Hilden, from Cashton, both had to go through this as teammates on the basketball team. Mannel said the pandemic made it difficult for the new players to come in and build chemistry with the players who were returning. They both talked about the shutdown in November affecting the season in an integral way and forcing the team to work on their games from home. Mannel said this was influential for him because he was still adjusting to the style of play here at Viterbo, and that long pause made it extremely difficult to regain traction.
Hilden, on the other hand, has taken up track since those teams have been allowed back on campus. The experience he’s had has led him down different paths and has forced him to look into his dedication to his sport. He stated that COVID-19 affected the way he approached both of his sports. His training schedule was limited and forced him to get creative. He also used the time off to focus on his work ethic, which he says really helped him get through the shutdown.
Throughout the first semester, there was a threat that many sports may not even take place and that was the case for Kendall Sheldon, first-year on the bowling team. Sheldon watched as COVID-19 shortened her bowling season drastically. She was also exposed to someone with COVID-19 during this time, which she says lessened the time she had with her team on the lanes. That also took a real toll on her spirit as well; she said during that whole time it was difficult to stay positive. During her time in quarantine, she was alone and focused on academics. Her biggest challenge when transitioning to college athletics was getting used to the time commitment.
These six athletes, despite the pandemic, have made the best of the seasons they are given. Stephani finished her soccer season with four goals and finished the indoor track season with third-team all-conference honors and a school record in the triple jump. Her teammate McGrane was able to compete in three meets in the weight throw, throwing her season-best of 11.06 meters and one top-five finish. Mannel has played in 10 games and has shot 36% from the field. Hilden has transitioned to track and has competed in five meets where he notched multiple top-ten finishes. O’Keefe and Sheldon’s seasons are starting up and they are excited to see what their seasons hold for them. Viterbo has a special group of up-and-coming first-year athletes that are ambitious and ready to compete.
