Last week, most Lafayette students took a break from classes to go home to family for the Thanksgiving holiday. However, things looked a bit different for some student-athletes.
Whether they were home or on campus, dedicated athletes engaged in comprehensive training regimens assigned to them by their respective coaches.
Junior punter Jakob Trestik explained how the football team prepared for the playoff game against the University of Delaware, while still allowing time to celebrate the holiday.
“We had an almost normal schedule for the week, with practices on Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday,” Trestik said. “Practice Thursday was early at seven so guys who lived close could go home for the rest of the day. We had meetings and a walkthrough Friday afternoon for those that were going to travel to the game, and everyone else was free to stay home for the rest of the break.”
Despite the holiday disruption, Trestik said the players’ outlook was positive. “Most of the team was excited for the opportunity to play in a playoff game, but we also knew that it would be a much more difficult game than any we’ve played recently. We knew that practice needed to be exceptional in order to have a chance at winning.”
Out-of-season athletes spent the break training as well. Junior Michael Bell, a member of the golf team, explained that the team had a more flexible schedule over the break than a typical week.
“Because the NCAA can’t mandate practice after our season finishes, we don’t have mandatory practice at the moment, nor do we have our contract with the indoor facility until next semester,” Bell said. “So we are all just practicing whenever we can on our own time. We still have team lifts twice a week and the occasional team meeting, but nothing much until we start back up again next semester.”
The track and field team had obligations over the break, too, as its athletes strove to remain physically and mentally fit for the team’s meet on Saturday. Senior hurdler Sophia Dongaris said that they were able to go home, albeit with some homework.
“Over break, our team was lucky enough to be able to go home for a few days; however, training did not stop while we were away,” Dongaris said. “The Sunday, Monday and Tuesday right before break we had practice as usual on campus, and then we were sent home with a training regimen to stay in shape and prepare for our meet this weekend. Our training blocks were split up like they normally are even over break, with Monday being technical work, Tuesday speed work, Wednesday active recovery day, Thursday more tech work, Friday lift circuits, Saturday off and Sunday as our shake out.”
