Hi Blog!
One of the things I love about Wellesley is PERA, which stands for physical education, recreation, and athletics. I’m part of our cross country and track team, and I run distance events. Athletics has been a way I’ve found a supportive community and gone on adventures.
To begin the process of playing a sport in college, I filled out the recruiting form to show I was interested. Then, I visited Wellesley the summer before my senior year of high school, but I wasn’t able to take a tour because of the pandemic. I was still able to meet with my coach and wander around campus with my parents. After my visit, I decided to apply early decision because I had fallen in love with Wellesley.
At the beginning of my first year, I got to campus about ten days early for pre-season. Looking back, it was nice to get the lay of the land and settle into campus life before orientation. It was awesome to run around Wellesley, and we even got to go on a trip to the coast to Nantasket Beach and run along the water. At the end of August, I had my first college meet on the Wellesley golf course. Many of my friends from my orientation groups came to cheer me on, and it was nice to have a home meet, because I never had a home cross country meet in high school.
Post-Beach run swim!
Racing the 5k at our home track meet.
Later in the season, we went on a team trip to Michigan to preview the nationals course. I had to miss a day of class but my professors were very understanding, and I was able to get notes from friends in my classes. It was my first time ever in the Midwest. In Michigan, we went to the Henry Ford Museum of American Innovation. There were older cars, and a costume exhibit from Disney movies. This year, we went to the Keene State College Invitational and got to hike Mt. Monadnock. There was 1,803 feet of elevation gain over four miles, but the view from the top was awesome!
Near the top of Mount Monadnock
Belle dress from the Disney costuming exhibit.
Another aspect of athletics is the other teams. I’ve attended soccer, basketball, lacrosse, and volleyball games and gone into Boston to watch the crew team row on the Charles. There have also been basketball games and dodgeball tournaments between teams, and the PERA staff actually won the last tournament. Athletics makes it easy to meet people on other teams, and both my roommates this past year were part of the crew team. Sports have been a big part time job at Wellesley, and I’m grateful for the connections I’ve made.
Until next time,
Elise