By Carlie Minichino ’09

My high school was very much like John Hughes’s movie The Breakfast Club, where you were defined by what you did or did not do and what you played or did not play. There were many athlete-students in my school but not necessarily many student-athletes.

Upon arriving on the hill for my first fall at Colby, I immediately saw the difference between high school and college. The senior captains on my volleyball team majored in environmental studies or psychology with a focus in neuroscience and biology. The team also had English, art, economics, and history majors, to name just a few. As a member of the softball team I met many young women who were thriving in the classroom as well as on the field. These women, who I am honored to call teammates and friends, provided me not only with a niche in which I felt comfortable but also with immeasurable advice as to how best to excel as a student-athlete at Colby.

And I find I do need the advice. It’s important to know to try to avoid Friday afternoon classes or Wednesday night seminars in the fall or any afternoon classes in the spring. It’s important to learn how to stay focused when Maine’s winter forces spring sports indoors for two thirds of their season. It’s important to realize when it’s worth the hassle to ask your next-door neighbors to quiet down because you have a game the next day versus when you just need to put earplugs in and hope for the best. It’s also important to have someone to commiserate with when you get back from a game at 11 p.m. and have a midterm the next morning. I have found athletic teams to be a bit like little families within the Colby community. By playing a sport, I have found a sense of place and access to great resources.

The kinship does not limit itself to the Colby campus, though. Athletic alums and supporters of Colby in general frequently make their presence known off the hill. The continuous support I have felt from alums is as exciting as it is inspiring, whether they express it at alumni games or as spectators when Colby plays near their homes. I always feel an extra sense of pride when I know that alums have taken the time to watch us play, and I hope to provide the school we all love with a victory. Even when the softball team travels to Florida for spring training, where we play almost a third of our schedule, alums come out in droves to make these games feel like they are on our own turf in front of a home crowd.

I have thoroughly enjoyed the past two and a half years at Colby and am excited for my remaining time here. I look forward to joining the tradition of continued Colby pride when my time on the hill ends. I am determined to provide as an alumna support and guidance to Colby athletes similar to what I have received as a student-athlete. It is a role I look forward to, and I will step into it with pride.

Message from C Club President Alex Wilson '73
Baseball Coach Dale Plummer on Tradition
Spring 2008 Previews