Club sports have long been a staple at the University of Detroit Mercy. They have not been utilized to their fullest capacity, though.
The club sports Detroit Mercy have been competitive and for social play. There are also sports clubs that are co-ed and sports clubs that offer year-round activities that offer growth experiences for beginners, competitive players or anywhere between.
Club sports are something that are continually growing at the University with University Recreation. Some clubs that used to be around that are no longer active are baseball, cycling and hockey.
Currently, the five club sports offered at the University are badminton, e-sports, tennis, men’s volleyball and women’s volleyball.
“I believe club sports are popular on campus because of the tremendous number of students that participate, and they are entirely student led,” said Allen Seales, Assistant Director of University Recreation “I also believe it is popular because it allows students to continue playing sports they have participated in before college or to try something new they have never played before. It allows students to have something to do outside of the classroom.”
Some of the pros of club sports is that the clubs that the University have are currently not played at the varsity level. With the social clubs anyone can join and have the option of playing in the intramural or competitive tournaments. Another pro is that flexibility of club sports and from it being student led. Club sports members also can travel to different cities and meet new people who also enjoy the same sport as them.
The future seems to look bright for club sports on campus. People have started to propose new club sports. The current leaders are working hard to set a foundation for each of their clubs and the growing participants each semester.
“My favorite thing about club sports is having another community of girls that I can spend my time with and do something I love with,” said Bella Cole, a member of the women’s volleyball team.“[Director of University Recreation] Mike Wynn has been doing an amazing job with how club sports are at Detroit Mercy.”
The biggest goal for club sports is to get each club organization to the level past growing and developing. That goal is to get each club to a level of having a steady attendance and participation to be able to play and have a fun experience.
