In March 2020, Agnes Scott athletes, as well as the rest of the world, had to stop everything due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Our seasons were cancelled and it forced us to have viturtal “practices” up until this 2021 Spring semester. Now that most of us are back on campus, we are gearing up for what may be our toughest season yet. Masking up now has a double meaning on the field, and we aren’t going to stop from showing how #ScottieStrong we are.
People have been wary of being around athletes. Rightfully so, we are allowed to have our masks off around each other and fully practice with up to twenty other people. That sounds bizarre nowadays, and a lot of us were worried as well. However, Agnes of course has a plan. We are tested every two weeks and every 48 hours before games. If one of our teammates contracts COVID, our entire team shuts down and quarantines for two weeks to stop the virus from spreading. We have people who we are and aren’t allowed to be around to minimize the risk. Also, most athletes were grouped together in the residence halls to better control an outbreak.
The COVID protocols go down to the slightest of details. All of the athletes used to share one ice bath on a normal basis (gross we know), but now each use is followed by an intense cleaning process before the next Scottie is able to use it. Our weight room is extremely limited due to the small size of the area. We aren’t allowed to use our locker room for similar reasons, which is where we would foster the most community between different teams. Usually we just have a few teams playing at a time, but all six of our sports are playing this spring. This causes a hectic schedule being that multiple teams need to use our only gym. We applaud our athletics staff for being quick on their feet and helping us work towards dominating on the field.
The most difficult part of our return to play is the fact that no spectators are allowed at our games. No cheering, no signs, no concession stand food, no senior night family tears, no awkward significant others not even understanding what is happening, nothing. We didn’t realize how important our sports fans are for us until they were taken away. The energy that comes from having someone there to watch you play keeps you going, so now we must learn to get that from each other. All of our home games will be streamed, so if you want to support your Scottie siblings, start a Zoom watch party! All athletes would be thrilled to see your support.
Despite all of these setbacks, we are very grateful for being given the opportunity to play our sports. These past few months have been hard away from our sport. We didn’t notice how much being a student athlete was a part of our identity here at Agnes, so we are glad to get a piece of that back. I know that the world is scary right now, but hopefully bringing back the sports people love will bring a little more hope into tomorrow, as long as we remain to stay safe and strong. Go Scotties!