The T-Birds are gearing up for a great year in sports. Now that the fresh faces have made their way through the impossible bookstore lines into UBC’s classrooms, five rookies are kicking off the semester with some hard truths about their athletic goals, personal pizza toppings and the fate of Thunder the Thunderbird. Despite their inexperience after a mere 21 days of classes, these five froshees have immense amounts of wisdom to divulge.
Araya Thierren (AT): swimming
Claire Emery (CE): golf
Emily Moore (EM): soccer
Julia Miller (JM): soccer
Logan Carver (LC): golf
1) What is your current pump-up song?
AT: My current pump-up song is “Gateway” by Tribunal (don't think anybody knows it).
CE: Anything country!
EM: “Deep Blue” by Arcade Fire. I like really slow songs and songs that make you think.
JM: “All Night” by Chance the Rapper.
LC: Before every round I listen to a set playlist. The theme of the playlist is positive and confident music. Golf is a very mentally demanding sport, so I find that starting in a good mood helps. Plus, most of the time the song gets stuck in my head, so it makes sense to be repeating positive words to myself rather than a catchy tune talking about how much Justin thinks Selena should go love herself.
2) What are your goals for your first year on the team?
AT: Get a medal at CIS and maybe even get FINA standard times.
CE: Win the NAIA championship.
EM: To develop my skills as a goalkeeper so I can help make an impact on the team.
JM: To be able to see an overall improvement in my personal performance. From a team aspect, I definitely want to take advantage of having senior players around and learn from them when it comes to soccer, as well as school. The ultimate goal would be to win a national title.
LC: My goal this year is to be a regular on the travel team and play in most events.
3) If UBC's mascot — Thunder the Thunderbird — perished in a tragic construction-related incident and you were in charge of hiring a replacement. Which animal would you choose?
AT: Hmmm, this is a hard one, but probably a wolf/coyote since they work in teams.
CE: Probably a chicken, then we could be the Lightning Chickens.
EM: I would probably choose an eagle because it's the bird that looks the most similar to the Thunderbird, then we don't have to throw out the mascot costume.
JM: A honey badger.
LC: Of course, after the community has finished mourning the loss of Thunder, I’d recommend a wolf to be the next mascot.
4) Which pizza toppings are your go-to and do you expect to be sick of them by the end of your first year?
AT: Sorry, I cannot comprehend this question. How does one get sick of pizza?
CE: Pineapple.
EM: I don't eat pizza on a regular basis, but when I do, I usually just get cheese. I'm pretty boring with my pizza toppings.
JM: I actually only eat cheese pizza and I could never get sick of it.
LC: I don’t see myself getting sick of any type of pizza anytime soon.
5) What is the best piece of advice you've received and how do you apply it to your sport?
AT: Use your resources. Be outgoing and don't hesitate to ask for help. I'll try to bother my coaches as much as possible this season.
CE: As cheesy as it sounds — “never give up,” because golf is such a mental game that you need to believe in yourself and your ability, even when things aren’t going your way. You never know what could happen.
EM: The best advice I have received is probably “stay true to yourself.” If you’re not being who you truly are, then how can you develop? This is the same in sport — if you're not playing the way you play, you cannot progress as a player or as a human being.
JM: Don't overthink everything. I apply this to my sport every day because soccer is such a fast-paced game. Most of your movements come naturally and when I overthink, I tend to lose the ball or not play the best ball.
LC: I was told once that golf is essentially a fine line between being organized, thoughtful and focused, all while not caring. With that, I always put everything I have into everything I do, including school. Once I pull the trigger, I am going to take the result I get — good or bad — and move on to the next obstacle, prepared to again give it my all.
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