Athletics Annual Report 2009–10 Pink Zone the Men’S and Women’S Basketball Doubleheader on January 16 Was Designated Numerous Raffles Were Held Throughout the Day
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Athletics Annual Report 2009–10 Pink Zone The men’s and women’s basketball doubleheader on January 16 was designated Numerous raffles were held throughout the day. The WBCA Pink Zone® initiative as the WBCA Pink Zone® game. Fans had the opportunity to bid on silent is a global, unified effort for the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s auction items such as a 12-person suite at the Arena at Harbor Yard for the (WBCA) nation of coaches to assist in raising breast cancer awareness on the Gravity Slashers Freestyle Motocross event and the Harlem Globetrotters visit. court, across campuses, in communities and beyond. 1 Message from the Director of Athletics s I stood on the sideline during one of our spring games, I looked at the scoreboard and saw the final seconds ticking away. I watched as the opponent tried for one last A offensive push to try and tie the game, while the Stags dug in for a final defensive stand. The coaches and student-athletes watched as those precious seconds ticked away, each team frantically trying to win the game. No one appreciates time more than those in the sports world. Whether you are a coach, a student-athlete, or a fan, you know how precious time is and how difficult preserving it can be. Just think of the coach who calls a timeout in the final seconds so that he or she can make use of every last second to win a game. Our student-athletes know how precious time is and how difficult it can be to control it. Juggling academic responsibilities with athletic responsibilities can be overwhelming at times. And, when you throw in additional responsibilities such as community service and internships, you quickly see that there is not much leisure or down time for a student-athlete. Athletics Director Gene Doris and City of We often tell our student-athletes to prioritize their lives, make choices that will be of the Bridgeport Mayor Bill Finch celebrate the greatest benefit to them. While that is easy to say, it is not easy in practice. A student-athlete 1,000th ticketed event at the Arena at cannot disregard academic or athletic responsibilities, which leaves the extracurricular Harbor Yard. activities on the chopping block. But I’ve come to know that those activities are very important for our student-athletes’ development as they transition from student to adult life. Our student-athletes also see the value in these activities, and therefore create time to include them in their daily lives. They embrace Fairfield University’s Jesuit mission and identity which instills awareness that academic achievement brings with it a responsibility to serve their community. Every Stags athletic team performs community service work in the Town of Fairfield and the City of Bridgeport. We do not require our programs to reach out, but rather leave it to each team to find their place in the surrounding community. This role often translates into academic service through tutoring or mentoring programs. You may have read about our student-athletes participating in the Read Aloud program or serving as academic coaches or tutors in area schools. Our latest initiative – Bridgeport’s Brightest – partnered our athletic program with the city’s public schools to reward city students for their academic performance in the Connecticut Mastery Test (CMT) and Connecticut Academic Performance Test (CAPT). In addition to serving others, our student-athletes also find time to improve on their own life skills by participating in the University’s internship program. Many of our student-athletes build their resumes through internships that have taken them to the financial district or the corporate sector. Other student-athletes found their way into editorial jobs with magazines or communication companies. As you page through this year’s annual report, you will see our student-athletes in the community, in the work place, in the classroom, and in competition. You will see how all of these elements come together in the true spirit of the Jesuit ideal of nurturing the mind, body, and spirit. And I know you will share in the pride that our entire University community has when it comes to our student-athletes. I am grateful to those who supported our student-athletes and programs through the Lyons-Lademan Fund. Through their gifts, we are able to complement the University’s commitment to athletics by providing our student-athletes with top-notch facilities and state-of-the art equipment that enhances their experience at Fairfield University. On behalf of our administrators, coaches, and student-athletes, I would like to express our thanks for your spirit, commitment, and support over the last year. Your cheers, encouragement, and attendance at our games is noticed, and certainly is appreciated by all of us in the athletics family. I wish you the best, and look forward to seeing you at one of our many games next year. Sincerely, Gene Doris, Athletics Director ATHLETICS ANNUAL REPORT 2009-10 FAIRFIELD UNIVERSITY Lending a Hand t’s been this way for centuries. Since the 1500s, Jesuit education has provided students with the opportunity to grow I as individuals, both academically and spiritually. One cannot just develop the mind, but must also exercise the spirit and the body in order to achieve harmony and become a complete person. The purpose of a Jesuit education is not to prepare a student for a particular vocation. The purpose of a Jesuit education is to prepare a student for life within the global community. Student-athletes also live by this doctrine. They understand that they must train their bodies for athletic success and their minds for academic achievement, but also realize that they hold a social responsibility to the greater community. Every year, Fairfield University student-athletes reached out to the Fairfield and Bridgeport communities on a daily basis through community service projects, such as Read-A-Loud days, and Hunger Cleanup. They also became involved in mentoring opportunities by coaching youth teams or tutoring in the local school systems. Fairfield student-athletes reach out not because it is a Men’s basketball student-athlete Colin Nickerson and his fellow requirement by a coach or administrator. They reach out because it student-athletes participated in the annual Read-A-Loud day. is part of who they are as students pursuing a Jesuit education. It is this belief that separates a Fairfield University student-athlete from their peers. “I feel like I’m doing a good deed so it makes me feel good as well,” Taryn Johnson, a sophomore on the women’s basketball team, Johnson said. “I like to read so I enjoy sharing that experience with the completed a day at Cesar Batalla Elementary School in Bridgeport children. I never had anyone do this when I was in school. So, to be able during the season. For her, it wasn’t about recognition. It was to maybe make a difference in someone’s life is a very special thing.” more about giving back to the community through one of her true Specialness is part of being in a community. The ability to stand pleasures – reading. on your own two feet to try and accomplish something that no one else thought possible is a true adrenalin rush. It’s also quite scary. But somehow, it seems possible, because, although you are standing on your own two feet, you know as a member of a community that someone has your back. When the Fairfield University golf teams decided to create a fund- raising and awareness campaign for breast cancer, there was that uncertainty associated with starting something new. The Stags raised money for every par or better they shot in the final round of each tournament they played in this season by seeking pledges or straight donations from family and friends. And, the Stags wore a pink golf shirt for that final round, a non-traditional uniform for a college team. Yet, like any community, their fellow golfers embraced the idea and helped the Stags with their efforts against breast cancer. “The players were surprised at the overwhelming response that they have gotten from the other teams,” said Roberto. “The other teams think that it is a wonderful thing we are doing and I am glad that my players have had the chance to hear the nice things being said.” A Jesuit education does not just exist in the moment. It exists in Women’s tennis student-athlete Paulina Rys drops a pair of shoes into the hearts and minds of student-athletes. And by being part of their the Soles 4 Souls collection box. person, a Jesuit education becomes a way of life, something that 3 The Stags raised money for every par or better they shot in the final round of each tournament they play in this season by seeking pledges or straight donations from family and friends. carries through every facet of one’s development as a human being. this world by utilizing their talents and skills to help corporations Many students join Fairfield’s Living and Learning Communities and organizations reach their goals. Those talents and skills are so they can become fully immersed into their Jesuit experience. The acquired through interaction with faculty and staff that not only Living and Learning Communities create a multicultural community teach Jesuit practices, but also live it. It is this interaction that across campus, building on the Fairfield University strategic vision allows Fairfield students to excel in the real world. of integrating learning through a variety of intentional residential Women’s lacrosse senior Kate Reardon accepted an internship learning programs.