By Megan Westphal
Adrian College competed at our first intercollegiate competition of the season, the Bronco Challenge Cup, earlier this month. The first competition of the season is always special in so many ways. Everyone is anxious to see their friends from other teams for the first time, watch program debuts and meet new teams. Our team was elated to attend and to start our season.
As we approached the competition, I was definitely nervous, but this was heavily outweighed by my excitement. My favorite part of intercollegiate skating is the community which cannot be found anywhere else.
As I stepped out on the ice for my short, I immediately looked up into the stands at my teammates. Seeing everyone standing up, waving and cheering calmed my nerves and made me feel ready to attack any program. There truly is no support like that of intercollegiate skating.
When I got off the ice, I had multiple skaters, some familiar and some new, come up to congratulate me and start a conversation. This community and camaraderie are my favorite parts about skating at this level. It is unlike anything I have ever experienced.
While this wasn’t my first time at this event, we had a couple of first-year students who took the ice for the first time this season. On our way to the competition, they asked about how the events worked, how scores worked and what the overall weekend would look like. They were thrilled to take the ice to represent their school for the first time.
“My first intercollegiate competition was the most fun competition I’ve ever been to in my skating career," freshman Bella Morris said. "I’ve never felt so supported as I did at the competition, and it felt amazing!"
Another of our freshmen, Madeline Josey, had a very unique opportunity. She was put in as a substitute due to a medical injury four days prior to the competition. She had to move up a level as well as learn and compete an entirely new program in less than a week. She worked incredibly hard leading up to the event, and her performance resulted in tears from many of her teammates and coaches. Not only was it her first performance as a Bulldog, but she skated with grace and passion that was unmatched.
Adrian College had an amazing competition, with almost every skater placing in the top three of their events. Everyone skated beautifully and their hard work and dedication showed in their performances. It was an extremely close competition, and we ended up coming in second , just three points away from firstplace.
However, it wasn’t just the outstanding performances that made this event so special. For some of our skaters, it was their first time competing freestyle, and they absolutely crushed their performances. There were so many memorable moments, from van rides full of music, laughter and inside jokes to dance parties in the locker rooms and first clean programs, it was truly unforgettable.
As we move forward into the season, we will continue to not only build our programs but also our memories with one another. Each intercollegiate competition is a firm reminder that the feeling of skating on a team is unmatched. The Adrian College Figure Skating Team cannot wait to see what the rest of this season holds for us, as well as every other team in this division!
