Soccer

Despite midterm exams and the end of the fall semester starting to appear on the horizon, Johnson Field and its neighboring greeneries were packed. Short and sweet rookie Rugby matches drew cheers from the Steuber Rugby Stadium, while informal pickup games of soccer were played out only a stone’s throw away on the IM South Fields. The cooling breezes of a new November month were filled with the buzzing of the excited crowds and spirited teams. Amidst all this activity, our Farm Games athletes found a space both in the fields and in their schedules for an afternoon of soccer tournament. 

The Neigborhood teams first competed in a series of minigame activities, each focused upon a different aspect of playing soccer: ball control, accuracy, field positions, and competing against other players. Activities included getting a ball as close to a marker on the field with only one touch, trying to hit the top bar of a goal, and blocking as many goal shots as possible. The winners of each minigame would represent their Neigborhood in the final 5v5 soccer tournament games. 

This minigame style of events stood out for our Farm Games athletes, who often cited that it was this approach to sports that made Farm Games stand out from typical athletic activities on campus. Sydney, 26’, who plays club soccer for Stanford, likes “that this is more fun, lighthearted, [and] co-ed” compared to more traditionally run sports events. Amaryllis, 26’, one of the athletes from last month’s track and field event, similarly enjoys “the diversity of events” and how these “non-conventional” approaches to sports “lowers the barrier of entry or intimidation of sports a lot more.” 

Sequoia was our winning neighborhood for this event, emerging victorious from the 5v5 tournament. Their win here brings them to second overall in the neighborhood standings. Liv, 28’, from team Sequoia, mentioned that this event has already inspired them to continue playing soccer together: “we’re already talking about making a pick-up group … being close in geography, like on campus, playing with people from Sequoia, is really helpful to make it actually happen.”

 Beyond bringing in club sports participants and inspiring neighborhood teams to continue enjoying these sports together, Farm Games continues to build its own community of athletes. Brian, 27’, mentioned that “participating in Farm Games last year” has motivated him to play in this year’s events. As this first half of the academic year begins to come to a close, we hope that our participants continue to find a community space with their teammates in these games.