Shannon Weber
Staff Writer

A typical day for me starts by waking up and going to class in the morning. I quickly grab lunch as I walk back to my room to get dressed for afternoon practice. I spend about two to three hours at practice and then grab dinner with my teammates. Afterwards, I head back to my room, shower and spend the rest of the night studying.
Being a student athlete involves commitment and responsibility. I have to plan out each day based on how much homework I have and how much practice time I need. Time management skills become very important.
As a student athlete, I get to play the sport I love while representing my school. At times, it becomes overwhelming with workouts and practice times overlapping. Conditioning and training occur mainly out-of-season. Some athletes work out in-season to stay in shape.
My workouts occur every two days during the week in the late afternoon and one day over the weekend in the early morning. Practices usually last for a couple of hours, almost every day of the week. I can usually plan how much time I want to spend at practice. If I have a lot of time I will spend most of my afternoon on the range. If my schedule is very packed, I will spend only an hour.
I struggle to find time to socialize and hang out with my friends during season. I am always spending time with my team and when I’m not, I am usually at the library hitting the books. Soon enough, lunch becomes an option.
As far as scheduling classes, student athletes are able to register early in order to fit in practice times and workouts throughout the semester. While this is convenient, all student-athletes experience missing class at some point due to traveling for competitions. For me, this is the most stressful part of being a student athlete. I miss a lot of classwork and lecture notes but luckily I have a good work ethic. I am proactive and get help from my professors and friends in the class in order to make up work I have missed.

Weber getting some swings in at Crossgates.  Sam Valentin/Snapper
Weber getting some swings in at Crossgates.
Sam Valentin/Snapper

Many people think student athletes receive special treatment, such as getting tutors right away and being able to skip classwork they may have missed. Some may think we get out of taking tests and receive extensions on our homework and projects, but this is not true. We are put on a waitlist to get tutors for our classes, just like everyone else. We have to make up all the work we miss. Missing a test is a little different depending on the professor, but most of the time we have to make it up before or after the days we will be missing.
Although traveling for competition can be fun and seem like a mini vacation, it is a lot of work. Rooming with my teammates is exciting but once we arrive at the course, we have our game face on. I get myself into a positive mindset so that I can go out and perform well. After a day of competition is over, I am forced to go back to my room and study the rest of the night.
Minus all the stress from classes and the need to find time to sleep, I love competing. The time leading up to it is when I work my hardest at practice so that I can be confident in my game. I am always looking to play well and help my team win.
The life of a student athlete can be difficult, but through the help of our coaches, teammates and professors, we are able to get our education while playing the sport we love.