Fall intramural sports began at the University of Maine, and it is encouraged that students use these programs as a way to participate in the community. This is a long-standing and well-loved program that touched tens of thousands of students and has created an impact in their life through friendship, leadership and balance.
Some options of activities offered are outdoor soccer, flag football and ultimate frisbee. This is a great opportunity to try something new or improve your skills with a familiar sport.
Students interested in joining should look to sign up under IMLeagues. Jeffrey Hunt, the Director of Campus Recreation, encourages those who want to create new friendships, continue playing the sport they love or pick up a new sport to participate. There are numerous reasons that have proven critical to the program’s success for many years.
“It provides a balance to life and an outlet for the stressful parts of being a student,” Hunt said. “It’s a great source of exercise and stress relief.”
7v7 soccer games are played Monday to Thursday from 7 p.m. to midnight. Each match is one hour long. This is offered for sororities on Sept. 9 to Oct. 10, as well as men’s, fraternities, and co-ed groups from Sept. 3 to Oct. 10. The environment is said to be fun, energetic and supportive.
7v7 outdoor flag football is a non-contact, traditional football league. These games are played Monday through Thursday between 7:00 p.m. and 12:00 a.m. Co-Recreational— which is open to all genders, men’s, and fraternity groups— are able to sign up and join between Sept. 9 and Oct. 10.
Ultimate frisbee is a non-contact sport in which the objective is to score goals by passing the disc to a teammate in the offensive end zone. This is available for CoRec groups between Sept. 16 until Oct. 7.
Other additional activities offered are the Black Bear 5k run that is available for sign up between Sept. 1 and Oct. 27, and field hockey, which is offered for students to join between Sept. 3 to Sept. 30. These are also a great way to get involved with the UMaine community and meet new people.
Another benefit to intramural sports is that students have the opportunity to continue to play a sport they love and be as competitive as they want. Sophia Santamaria, a fifth-year student that just finished her senior year for the University of Maine’s women’s soccer team, says how joining intramural soccer has helped her regain some of her love for soccer.
“Personally, some of my passion for the game was diminished by being in a pressured and intense environment that D1 soccer calls for,” Santamaria said. “However, due to intramurals, there is less stress about worrying over mistakes I make, because I can have fun kicking the ball around like when I was a little kid.” Santamaria also explains how intramurals is an escape from her long hours that the nursing program calls for.
Playing sports in a stress-free and positive environment can have many benefits physically and mentally. Countless students have found this program to be impactful in their life by making lifelong friendships, and being as competitive as they want to while still having fun.
