Spring Sport Social Thursday in the UREC Conference room on the Edinburg campus. Celeste Cruz-Marin/Vaquero Radio
Students gathered at the University Recreation Center Conference Room Thursday to meet athletes from sports clubs across campus and build new connections.
With the semester coming to an end, the Spring Sport Club Social gave students a chance to step away from competition and focus on building friendship, involvement, discovery and community across campus.
The event invited multiple members from several sport clubs to spend time together, share experiences and learn more about other organizations at UTRGV.
Keyla Medellin, sport management intern and sport club supervisor at UREC, said the goal was to create a more interactive environment for students.
“Our goal here is to either have them recruit other members to their clubs as well as get to know each other for them to have a better environment over here at the University of Recreation,” Medellin said.
She said the social invitational was also created to help clubs support each other as newer organizations continue to grow.
“Maybe like collab with each other. It’s just engagement that would help a lot especially. And with yes, like with the interactive part, I would say the social skills is also a really big part of that,” she said.
For students, the event allowed more than just a chance to talk about sports.
Isaiah Loya, president of the Powerlifting Club, said sport clubs help students stay connected and motivated throughout college.
“Honestly, it brings people together, especially for powerlifting. It’s hard for most people to continue their journey, so I’m glad I just give them the opportunity in college,” Loya said.
Tennis Club secretary Jocelyn Ramos said events such as the social help students meet people they normally would not interact with on campus.
“There’s some people that join clubs to connect with other people and have more friendships,” Ramos said. “I feel like that definitely did happen. So I think that’s important.”
Medellin said UREC hopes events like this continue each semester as the sport club community expands.
“They’re the ones that grow the community. They’re the ones that help us with the funding, lets say, like because without them, this department couldn’t be nothing,” she said.
Students interested in joining a sport club reach the front desk of the UREC or email them at recsports@utrgv.edu
This Carmen Gonzalez for Vaquero Radio.
