Fall athletes at Roger Williams arrive on campus in August before most students start to pack up for the semester. This year, classes began on Aug. 29 — just two days before the women’s volleyball team played their first game. 

For fall athletes, assisting with freshmen move-in days before the semester begins is mandatory. The student-athletes move in about two weeks before that day, according to Women’s Volleyball Head Coach Danielle Soubliere. They need campus housing to have their rooms ready by the time they arrive on campus.  

“Us helping with move in is our way of paying for that,” Soubliere said.

But aside from that, not much else is mandatory. They have their practices and games and then once the season ends, they get a break.

According to Soubliere, the team gets until spring break, usually the second week of March, to rest before they begin captain’s practices without her there. Then, just a little under two months later, the academic year is over. 

Winter athletes have a short period of time before they begin their season. The swimming and diving teams have their first meet scheduled on Oct. 6 — a little over one month after the beginning of the fall semester.

According to sophomore Christian Montanez, the offseason includes some team bonding activities aside from their practices, like kickball. Throughout the week, the team has captain’s practices that, according to Montanez, range from an hour and a half to two hours. Following the practice, the team lifts weights together.

The team doesn’t have to help out with an event like freshmen move-in, but they do participate in Swim Across America. The RWU team earned a spot on the organization’s honor roll with a total donation of $5,615 toward cancer research, prevention and treatment.

The winter season for sports comes to an end right before spring sports begin, meaning some winter athletes only have about three full months out of the entire academic year that they aren’t competing against other schools.

The softball, baseball and lacrosse teams have already begun their practices despite starting their games in the spring semester. Montanez, also a member of the baseball team, says they practice for four weeks in the fall, and are currently only holding captain’s practices due to NCAA rules.