By Luis Palomino / Staff Writer

Missouri Valley Indoor soccer intramural brought excitement, strong competition and an unexpected twist: one girl should be actively playing on the field at all times. In previous intramural events, there was a girl’s league and a men’s league, but on this occasion it was co-ed games. Malcom Center Gym hosted the indoor soccer games on April 1 and 3, the event was organized by the Student Activities team.

After some previous intramural events, James Rowlett, Director of Student Activities, identified the demand from girls to compete against boys, so changes were made for this opportunity.

 “Females have always been a part of the soccer intramurals,” Rowlett said. “Last year some of the female students wanted to compete against the males and didn’t want to play in a separate league, so we made it co-ed again this year.”

Plenty of spectators were present at the gym on the two dates, matches were intense and verbal jabs between players sparked. Among the students, a theory circulated that including females on the field was a way to decrease these interactions or prevent fights.

“This is not true,” Rowlett said. “This rule was made to level the playing field.”

Even though this rule change was broadly accepted, some people do not agree with it and would love to have the separate leagues back as it used to be.

“Don´t get me wrong,” said M. Aldabo, a senior student. “I do enjoy participating with my friends, but it is just different to play with boys than playing only with girls.”

According to the organization, intramurals are held biweekly and they avoid scheduling these events the week before midterms or finals so students can actually focus on studying. Even though these events are set every 15 days, students have expressed their desire to see more of this happening on campus.

“It is fun to participate in these events; they should be more often,” said N. Umbacia, another senior student. “It would be good if we actually use goalies and an indoor ball instead of cones and a soccer ball.” 

The event was a success on both dates, and students enjoyed high-level games and competing with friends and classmates. Student Activities will continue hosting co-ed intramurals as they feel the competition will keep going on unless they hear otherwise.

“Come have fun at intramurals,” Rowlett said. “Compete with your fellow classmates and also create bonds with individuals you may not have known before.”