Chaminade University’s men’s basketball team was recently picked to finish third in the Pacific West Conference men’s basketball preseason poll. The Swords finished 19-13 last season and won the PacWest Conference Tournament. McCabe Gym usually echoes with cheers, sometimes jeers, on game night.
A few hundred feet up the hill, a different type of basketball is played. On tennis court 1, students of all majors and backgrounds meet up once a week to play basketball, purely for fun. There’s no trophy awarded at the end and there’s no pressure. This is intramural sports.
“You get to meet new friends while you’re playing a sport,” freshman Ashlee Navarro said. “It’s not as much pressure as a school team, like if you play for college. It’s a break, an escape from your homework and all of that, and you just play for fun.”
Navarro is a Criminal Justice major who plays for the basketball team Chosen Onez. She played basketball at Moanalua High School but the pressure took too much of a toll on her studies and had to quit. She said that intramurals allows her to have all the fun of sports, meeting people and participating in a physical activity, without the work and stress of practice and coaches.
The Office of Student Activities and Leadership tries to offer two leagues and at least one tournament each semester. In the fall, basketball and a sport voted on by students, this semester is dodgeball, are offered with a volleyball tournament. During the spring semester, volleyball and an elected sport are offered with a basketball tournament. The second sport league is voted on at the OSAL office with a survey. The sports in the running for next semester are kickball or tennis. Intramural sports not only offers a way to be physically active but it’s also a channel to meet new people.
“Everyone has a sport they like to play, and this example is basketball,” OSAL employee and CUH men’s basketball forward Frankie Eteuati said. “When you get to the college level, sometimes it’s hard to find a place to have fun and play a competitive game. Whether it’s a blowout or not, there’s something about the concept of playing an organized, competitive game that people miss when they leave their last stage of competitive sports.”
Basketball intramural referee Eteuati believes intramural sports are important for students and wished he could join in the fun. He described it as a fun way to bond with people who share an interest with you, a social icebreaker.
OSAL’s four-year director Makerusa “Mak” Porotesano said that as far as he can think, intramural sports has always been a medium for students in higher education to enjoy and participate in sports. Throughout this past year, 129 students have participated in intramural sports.
“It’s a great way to stay in shape, and it’s not time demanding,” Porotesano said. “So like once a week if you want to commit to something, this is a great way to do it. I’ve seen people who come in and started a team together, who didn’t know each other, and they’re like best friends to this day, so it’s a great community builder.”
* Intramural Sports FYI:
You can sign up on the IMLeagues website, under Chaminade University Intramurals. There are step-by-step instructions on OSAL’s Health and Wellness webpage, which can be found on the Chaminade website, under the Student Life tab, Activities & Clubs.
The last scheduled basketball game is on Monday, November 17. The last scheduled dodgeball game is Thursday, November 20.
