Millersville University offers its 7,206 undergraduates a range of 14 different club sports in which they can participate in.

Whether those sports are lacrosse, water polo, rugby, ice hockey, or ultimate frisbee students who are looking to become more active, stay in shape or continue sports beyond high school have the opportunity to play in one club sport or another.

These sports are recognized and receive funding from the University just like the school’s big sports teams such as basketball, football or baseball.

The difference lies in the fact that the big school sports receive much more in the means of allocations and facilities, and they are also able to hand out scholarships to recruit players, something the club sports can not offer.

Nonetheless, each individual sports team, whether it is a club sport or a NCAA Division II official sports team on campus, faces their opponents as a representative for the University.

While the importance of the major sports for the University is without question, could there be a question as to how fair the University treats its separate club teams?

Dr. Gordon Nesbitt is an associate professor of wellness and sport sciences as well as the Director of Campus Recreation and Intramurals.  Dr. Nesbitt and a board of officials each semester meet with members of the University to help come up with the figures that decide how much money each club team is to receive from the University per semester.

“Some club teams need more money than others,” Nesbitt said.  “Ice time for ice hockey cost a considerable amount more for home games than some other clubs.”

Millersville’s club ice hockey team needs a hockey rink to play their home games on. The University does not have one on campus, so the hockey team receives money from the school to help rent an ice hockey rink off of PA-741 to play all of their home games.

Hockey is not the only team that does not play their home games on campus.  With the limited amount of facilities and space on campus, not all of the University’s club teams play their home games on campus either.  Obviously the hockey team needs the amount of money it receives to be able to hold home games, but what about the other teams who do not receive as much money and still must play their home games off campus?

Granted most of the other sports merely require an empty field, and an ice rink is a lot harder to come across, but still, most fields that are suitable for play are owned by someone else.

The Millersville men’s and women’s rugby teams play their home games off campus at Centerville Elementary School, just off of Centerville Road.  They do not receive any money for use of the field, and it was put upon the teams’ shoulders to find a good enough field.

To some, the fact that a club team does not hold its home games on campus may sound perplexing.  While some club sports get the short end of the stick because the campus does not have the facilities necessary, others have to base their schedule around the big time sports teams.

The men’s lacrosse team at the University holds their practices and games on the soccer team’s practice field just behind Pucillo Gymnasium.  While that area is called their home pitch, it cannot be called that during the soccer season.  If it is soccer season, the lacrosse team is relegated to the nearby “spoils” field where the band practices, right next to the soccer practice fields.

But that can also become troublesome because the men and women’s rugby teams practice there so the field space becomes very limited, and when the band needs the field for practice, all of the teams are sent to practice at some obscure patch of land around campus.

The decisions on where to practice are decided in just the same way as the decisions made on how much money each team is to receive.
“We base it on need and availability.  We don’t have enough space so sometimes the club teams get the worst end of it,” Nesbitt explained.

In general, most club sports have their own schedules as to when and where they practice due to the fact that other activities or clubs take precedence over their sport.

Men’s rugby now practices at Brooks Field near the pond; somewhere they have been trying to practice for a few years, but only have been able to this semester because the girls’ field hockey team does not have any spring home games there and are not making use of it.

Women’s rugby gets use of the “spoils” field because there is no band or sharing with men’s rugby or lacrosse, because lacrosse has full rights to the field now that the soccer season has ended.  Club teams also have one other facet among them that no other school recognized sports have.

While many of the scholarship worthy athletic teams receive free gear such as clothing and shoes from the University, Millersville club teams are required to pay dues and the only clothing they get is made on their own or bought at the school store.  Dues are a set amount of money each member of each specific team pays in order to help support the team financially.

“We have about 35 kids on our team and each pays $60 per semester,” men’s rugby team president Dan Oliver said.  “Dues cover referee fees, tournament fees, equipment fees and provide jerseys and other small things necessary to the team.”

All of the items Oliver mentioned are typically paid by the school for the larger school teams.  As of right now, Oliver estimates the rugby team is to receive about $2200 for the semester from the University.  That, he says will help cover “coach fees and other things that our dues cover as well.”

Matt Stubbe, captain of the men’s lacrosse team, estimates his team is only receiving minimal funding.  “To be honest I don’t think we’re even getting any money right now.  Up until this spring season we have been getting nominal funding, and I know they used to pay for gas on our road trips.  I don’t know if they’re even doing that anymore.”

It is known that school’s make enormous amounts of income for the bigger sports, and it is nice that they do provide others who just want to continue being active the chance to do so by providing some funds.

However, no matter how one looks at it, it still comes down to the same point: no matter what sport is being played at any level, each team is merely just a representative of Millersville University, only it is time that the club teams start receiving a little more recognition.
These teams work just as hard, and put in the same amount of effort in winning their championships.

Considering the obstacles they face, it has been long overdue.