“Spirit” can be defined in many different ways. Energy, soul, personality, attitude; all those words come to mind when we try to describe “spirit.” Friday night proved an exciting one for Fleet Athletics but it also demonstrated the uniqueness of “spirit” in Division II athletics. The exciting part was watching our women’s volleyball team move to 5-0 in conference play by thrashing Queens University of Charlotte. What set that scene apart from any other typical athletic event was displayed in the stands. The raucous student section was led by a loud and supportive men’s soccer team seated at center court. Up above them to the right was our cross country team decked out in classy t-shirts representing their sport. In the right hand corner, a large group of baseball players were assembled, while in the far left corner of the bleachers sat our women’s lacrosse team. Seated just to the left of the lacrosse team was the men’s basketball team who were just right of the women’s basketball team. The women’s soccer team assembled in the front row in close proximity of our enthusiastic men’s soccer team.It wasn’t formally intentional that these teams were all seated together in their own section, but it demonstrated something special about Erskine student-athletes and/or Division II athletes for that matter in two ways. First, seeing each team sitting together demonstrates a unity of group that all coaches desire to have on their teams. While players don’t have to like each other to be successful on the playing field, it certainly enhances team chemistry if they all get along. Secondly, as nearly half of the Erskine student population participates on intercollegiate athletic teams, the reality is that teams have to support each other. Sport teams realize that supporting others is the best way to attract fans of their own at games. So they all bond together without probably even talking about it to help create “spirited” atmospheres, in this case it was at our volleyball team’s match.
I have witnessed that “spirit” in other areas already this year. Our cross country team members joined new coaches Rick and Mary Wilson to re-design our cross country course this fall. Last Saturday, the team hosted the Erskine Invitational where each runner did much more than just run. They mowed, picked up rocks, trimmed branches, and performed various sorts of course set-up in preparation for the race. Once the race started, the Erskine runners got help with mile splits and directions from 26 members of the Erskine men’s basketball team, each awaking before the sun came up on a Saturday morning. The “spirit” was rolling! We saw it again in men’s soccer last week when the Flying Fleet men’s team defeated Lander for the first time in 20 years. The feat was made more amazing by the fact that the Fleet played 75 minutes with only 10 men on the field. Only a team with a special “spirit” could achieve that type of result.
The culmination of Friday night came on match point as the entire student (athlete) section rose to their feet cheering loudly. It is nice to have parents and local fans cheering for you, but to see your own student-athletes, who well understand the pain and toil it takes on a daily basis to compete at NCAA Division II, that’s just special. As I observed it all from across the Galloway Center, I got chills at the awesome scene. We are the Erskine Flying Fleet and we have a true sense of “spirit.”
