Hamline University has a wide variety of athletic opportunities, yet at times these opportunities can seem cut off and exclusive.

Sophomore Will Rittgers expressed this when he said, “These teams want to do well, because of that, they can’t really be inclusive, they can only take a few of the better athletes.”

Yet for those who aren’t a part of varsity athletics here at Hamline there are still opportunities to get active. One of the most organized ways is through Hamline’s intramural sports program.

“This program was designed to make Hamline more inclusive, there is no need to be an athlete to play.” said Josh Guetter Head of the Hamline Rec department.

Guetter started at Hamline earlier this year and has already helped to put on Hamline’s intramural volleyball league. In this league 23 teams of four participated in a semi competitive tournament.

Rittgers, who had participated in the tournament said, “I had fun, everyone had fun. It didn’t matter if you won or lost, it was about getting a group of buddies together and having a good time.”  

There are other benefits to Intramurals beyond just exercise.

“It helps with self exploration. You never know what might be your next hobby if you don’t try and step out of your comfort zone,” Guetter said.

A full formal league can be quite a time commitment with multiple games each week. The Rec department is hoping to expand what it has to offer in terms of Intramurals.

“We want to foster independent play, something with a bit less commitment to be available to students and faculty,” Guetter said.

Looking at the upcoming intramural season there are tournaments for Floor Hockey and Basketball. While registration for teams has closed it isn’t too late to get involved as a free agent available to other teams who might not have everyone they need.

Otherwise as Guetter said, “anyone is welcome to come and play or just watch.”

While intramurals are able to provide a wide range of activities it does not have everything yet. So for those who would like to do something that is not offered by the program there are a few options. Guetter is willing to take suggestions for any activity and hopes to be able to make something happen.

“If you really love ping pong and you want to find someone else who enjoys it just come talk to us and we’ll see what we can do about setting up a ping pong club.”

Another option for students is to rent equipment directly from campus rec.

“Our Recreation Desk is in Walker Fieldhouse and offers a wide range of equipment, anything like basketballs, volleyballs, lawn games, camping equipment, golfing equipment etc. Basically anything you can think of we have there,” said senior Aleksandra Gibas who runs the Campus Rec front desk.

For anyone interested in getting in contact with the rec department their email is campusrec@hamline.edu. Otherwise students can contact Guetter directly at jguetter02@hamline.edu.