Athletes host annual alumni day
The University of Indianapolis men’s and women’s soccer and football programs hosted their annual alumni games the weekend of April 21-22. The alumni games allow past players to remain a part of UIndy tradition.
While each of the teams played on the same field, the setup was different for each sport. The alumni game for football took place on Saturday afternoon following the spring football game.
Head Coach Bob Bartolomeo thinks highly of the alumni games and looks forward to them.
“It’s a great event for us,” Bartolomeo said. “It’s [great] in terms of football that we get alumni back on campus and playing in the game.”
Alumni played against other alumni in a seven-on-seven flag football game. The returning alumni ranged from recent graduates to someone who played in 1948.
Matt Donovan, associate director of athletics, said that although the 1948 graduate doesn’t play, he watches, and the teams like to respect him by calling him the honorary coach.
Donovan said the alumni get a strong feeling about where the program is heading because of the connection the alumni game gives them to the current coaches.
“You can’t find a better way for the alums to interact with the grads than the coaches being the officials,” Donovan said. “It’s very lighthearted and very jovial. The assistant coaches make fun of the alums and the alums make fun of the assistant coaches. You can’t ask for a better type of setting.”
This year marked the fifth consecutive year for this tradition, and about 20 alumni played in the game. In previous years the number has been up to 40.
Donovan said that the number one purpose for the alumni games is to reestablish the connection between the alumni and current players and coaches in a fun way.
Men’s soccer played its game under the lights Saturday night. Soccer set up its match a bit differently, playing two separate games.
The first game from 7 p.m. to 8 p.m. was for alumni from the years prior to 2006. This game was slightly less competitive and more relaxed.
After the first game, the alumni from 2006 to the current players came out to play. Although this game was much more competitive, Head Coach John Higgins didn’t recall the alumni ever beating the current players.
Higgins, an alum from the 2008 graduating class, played in the first alumni game in 2006 as a member of the soccer team.
“A lot of great changes have happened in athletics, and it’s nice for alumni to come back and see where things are going,” Higgins said.
Higgins cited the improved facilities as one of the big changes that he is glad the alumni get to come back to see, since many have not seen the new dome on campus.
Women’s soccer played its game at noon on Sunday, setting up three 30-minute periods. In the first 30 minutes, the alumni played against the current players, while in the next two periods, alumni played against other alumni.
Head Coach Kiley Cirillo said he hoped the game would continue to celebrate the history of the Greyhounds’ women’s soccer program.
Cirillo said that the most important reasons for having the alumni games is to continue to build a support system for the women’s soccer program on campus as well as give the alumni a chance to see how the program and the game have grown over the years.
