By: Maxmillian Robinson
Seven months. That’s how long it had been that our Panther athletes were prevented by the Covid-19 shutdown from seeing each other in person, talking to their coaches face to face and most importantly, getting back into their facilities. But as of Sept. 22, all sports departments have returned to some sort of physical practice, according to Ian Schraier, the assistant athletic director for sports information. Since then, athletes have worked their way back into a regular athletic schedule, from individual/small group practices, to now participating in full roster sccrimages.
“Practice restarted in phases,” said head men’s soccer coach Gary Book. “We worked in small socially distanced groups from September 22 until October 11. October 12 was the first day of regular practice with our full roster.”
Book said that practices are held daily, Monday through Friday, from 12:15 to 1:45 pm.
Head volleyball coach Dani MacKnight, said. “We have been practicing Tuesday and Thursday for an hour progressing to two hours as of this week. We are also adding Wednesday practices this week.”
When the volleyball team resumed practices on Sept. 22, one player particularly chimed in on her experience so far.
“Because we took a huge break without training and playing our sport, the first week of practices have been kind of welcoming us back into our routine,” said volleyball player Sofia Pinzon. “Physically it is going to take a few more practices to fully get back into volleyball shape. I think me and my team are all on the same page of wanting to get back to tough competition as quickly as possible, so we are taking these practices one day at a time.”
Pinzon, who is entering her second season, is very eager to continue winning with her team. Without a set date to begin their in-game season, she continues to hope that the volleyball team will be back on the road competing again.
“Right now, we would be in season traveling every week, so this season feels completely different,” Pinzon explained. “I have so much time on my hands this fall and not nearly practicing as much as we did last season. I miss the busy schedule I had last year and cannot wait to go back on the road to compete with the team after this pandemic is over.”
Men’s tennis player David Leader also commented on resuming practices.
“For me it was hard to practice in the first few weeks simply because of my class schedule,” said Leader. “Once I began it was a little challenging to find a rhythm. I had missed out on a few weeks of practice just before classes started since I had to quarantine as an international student.”
The current rule in place for Adelphi, is if you are an international student or someone from a state with high cases of Covid-19, then you must quarantine for 14 days upon arrival. That had a major impact on Leader, who is a native of Bermuda.
“Personally there hasn’t been much change in my routine, however I do try to get as much sleep as possible.” Leader said..
As there has been no official ruling yet as to when the season will begin for our Panthers, how have they continued to stay consistent during times like this?
“Sleep is the number one thing I make sure to [do to] get prepared for the season,” Pinzon replied. “this makes sure I am energized for the practices.”
“This season feels different for many reasons,” said Leader. “Tennis is a spring sport but in the fall we normally would still have occasional tournaments and friendly matches. With all that’s going on that hasn’t been possible.”
Whether it’s rest, new eating habits or a change in the work schedule, one common denominator is for certain, these athletes will stop at nothing to prepare for the quirky season ahead. Consistency at its finest.
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