Over winter break, women’s basketball will square off in seven matchups
Mike Howells / The Collegian
As students and faculty at Fresno State prepare to head home after finals are over for the holiday break, student athletes, more specifically the women’s basketball team, will remain on campus.
Instead of settling down and relaxing with family and friends for the winter festivities, the players will start to focus more on the upcoming games ahead.
This month-long stretch of no school from Dec. 17 to Jan. 19 will be a period of intense practicing and stiff competition in games for head coach Adrian Wiggins’ squad. With more time to concentrate on executing their team strategy, the women’s basketball teams will use this stretch to fine tune their games in preparation for the Western Athletic Conference schedule that lay ahead.
For those student-athletes who hail from Fresno and the surrounding communities, being apart from their family for the holidays is much more relaxed as they are still able to see their loved ones on a regular basis.
Even though the women’s basketball players receive a five-day vacation from Dec. 21 to 25 they must return immediately the day after Christmas pick up practice again. For those who come from other states, or even countries, this long stretch of no school and only on-court activity poses a small nuisance.
On the women’s basketball team, there are a five players who were recruited from Australia, and they most likely will not have a chance to go home and visit their family and friends. In addition to the Australian athletes, four other players come from states outside of California, and will only get limited time to be with their loved ones.
Although this may seem rather hard and insensitive to the young athletes who pour their heart and soul into Fresno State athletics, they all make the best of it by planning with their family and friends in advance of the upcoming vacation. On the women’s team, redshirt freshman Taylor Thompson, who comes from Cache, Okla., plans to visit home after the team heads to New York to play in the St. Johns Holiday tournament.
“After we’re done in New York, I’m leaving from New York to go to Oklahoma to visit with my family for the holidays until we have to come back,” Thompson said. “When at home, we get to spend time with friends and family and then after the 26th, we have to come back to start practice again.”
As for the student athletes who are from Australia, the chances of returning home are very bleak and all of them know that they will not be able to visit their families. However, in the circumstance of Bree Farley, a freshman from Kadina, South Australia, finds some hope by being able to visit with her mother who residess in Fresno.
“When I found out that we weren’t going to be able to go home, I knew that was going to be the case and I didn’t get my hopes up,” Farley said. “I’m looking forward to the summer holiday anyways, and visiting with my mom who lives out here so I get to see her pretty often.”