Intramurals offer variety of activities, sports

Intramural sports have become a staple in student life at UW-River Falls.

“Intramurals are offered year round, from September through late April or early May, and there is a sport for just about everyone,” said Heidi Hilgers, an intramural supervisor.

There are four different intramural sports offered in both the fall and spring. Flag football, soccer, women’s broomball and indoor volleyball are offered in the fall. Men’s broomball, softball, ultimate Frisbee and basketball are offered in the spring. Each sport is also divided into sub categories as well.

“We offer co-rec leagues, male leagues and female leagues. Also, each sport has a competitive league and a recreational league, so students can play either more seriously or just for fun,” Hilgers said.

The sports offered during each semester are also divided up, so they do not happen all at once. In the fall, the soccer and flag football seasons are the first to begin, running from late September until late October. Women’s broomball begins in early October and runs until early November. Volleyball begins at the end of October and runs through the end of November.

In addition to the sporting leagues, intramurals also offers one day tournaments through out the year as well. Intramurals works to schedule game times around when students would be most available as well.

“We also have tournaments for dodgeball, bean bags, floor hockey, sand volleyball and 3-on-3 basketball,” Hilgers said. “Games and tournaments are usually scheduled later in the day and sometimes on weekends so students can make it after class.”

In June, the UWRF intramural program was also named one of the best intramural sports schools in the country, according to bestcolleges.com. The website said, “Colleges were vetted based on the number of intramural sports on their roster, the comprehensive qualities of team management and coaching, as well as surveys sent to current students which assessed how enjoyable intramural sports were to play at each school.”

Other schools from Wisconsin joining UWRF on the list were UW-Oshkosh, UW-Whitewater, UW-La Crosse and UW-Stevens Point.

Participating in intramurals is also beneficial for students.

“Students should participate in intramurals because it’s a great way to meet new people, make new friends and take a break from their stressful schedules. Plus, it’s a fun way to get some exercise,” Hilgers said.

There are a little less than 350 students signed up for football and soccer alone in the current fall season.

One of those students is Lisa Bowker, who plays for an intramural soccer team in the fall.

“I like playing intramurals because it is a lot if fun and you get to meet a lot of awesome people. It’s beneficial to me because it is stress relief from classes and studying, and it’s great to get out and play for a bit,” Bowker said.

In addition to getting outside and having fun, the intramural leagues and tournaments offer more incentive than just bragging rights for the winners.

“We give out awesome T-shirts to teams who win the championship,” said Hilgers.