By Samantha Norwood, staff writer.

With the end of a unique winter sports season upon us, many Ravens are reflecting on their seasons and the challenges that came with them. While this was a most difficult year for college athletes across the country, Franklin Pierce University has done all it can to keep everyone safe and on campus. Though that has meant limited playing time for athletes, they have combated the challenges and stood tall in the face of adversity.

Winter sports were able to scrimmage against each other and even managed mix in some competition against other schools. “We competed against Becker for two games,” explained Kiki Doucette, a junior and captain of the women’s ice hockey team. “We had two other opponents, however, the school was put into a shelter-in-place and we were unable to compete.” Men’s ice hockey managed to complete six games. Men’s and women’s basketball each played a home-and-home series with American International, and mixed in several other scrimmage dates.

Meanwhile, intrasquad scrimmages proved to be a great way to avoid external contacts, while still providing the thrill of competition. “We did quite a few scrimmages within our team. It was really fun because we tried our best to make it feel like as much like a game as we can,” said Emily Kramer, a senior and teammate of Doucette. “We brought out the game jerseys and just competed against each other.” Athletes were able to wear their team jerseys with pride, while also bonding with their teammates through the sports they love.

However, with schools across the region resuming intercollegiate competition, many people worried the number of COVID cases would soar. Fortunately, the school increased testing and kept precautions in place. “We were tested three times per week to ensure we were keeping our community safe while participating in our sport, and continuously followed COVID protocols throughout our season,” said Doucette. “We played every practice with our masks on and did our best to try to adjust to this ‘new normal.’” The successes of Franklin Pierce’s hockey teams, in particular, at limiting COVID spread provided a beacon of hope for spring sports: competition could be returned to safely and healthily.

How did these precautions affect the student-athletes? They understood the severity of the situation and knew they were the only option, if they wanted to have any chance of competing against other schools. Sam van Oostrum, a senior on the men’s basketball team explained, “I think after some time of getting used to all the rules, we’ve adjusted well. It required a lot patience to implement the changes.”

While it may not be the year they had all hoped for, especially those in their senior seasons, they have adapted and hold pride in how their teams have faced the situation. As Kramer put it: “Even though it wasn’t what I pictured my senior year to be, I am so thankful to have made the memories I did with my teammates new and old. We have a lot of talent on the team and I can’t wait to watch them compete in the upcoming years and see them accomplish so much as a group.”

With grass now showing across campus and the ice on Pearly melted, Franklin Pierce’s winter sports have paved the way for the school’s return to Northeast-10 Conference competition this spring.