UNH Synchronized Skating Team

The University of New Hampshire Synchronized Skating Team competed in the United States Collegiate Skating Nationals this past Saturday, March 6th, in Minneapolis, Minnesota.

The team placed 10th out of 13 teams, which are among the best in the country.

They train all year for a four minute routine that must be perfection.

In order to qualify for Nationals, the team had to place within the top six teams at the Eastern Sectional Competitions that were held in Lowell, Mass, in January. They were successful and placed third, winning a bronze medal.

“It was a lot of pressure, but we knew we could make it,” says Emily Hutson, a sophomore on the team.

The Skating Team is considered a club sport and just completed its eleventh season. As a club sport, the team is entirely self-governed. A board of five skaters are elected at the end of each season. Thier positions range from president to wardrobe/supplies coordinator. Being entirely self governed has its advantages while also posing a unique set of challenges.

Last season when the women realized that their coach was not a good fit for the team, they decided to let her go, and began the search for a new leader.

This came in the form of Shawna Ludy, a current student at UMass Boston who skated for four years with the Haydenettes, of Lexington, Mass., a team that is widely recognized as the strongest program in all of Senior United States Synchronized Skating.

“We hired her in efforts of to step up the level of competition. We were hoping to raise the bar,” says Hutson.

While the ability to choose one’s coach may be considered a welcome freedom, the task of being an entirely financially independent team is not. Each member of the team is expected to pay 1800 dollars a year in dues, which cover travel, ice time, clothing, and coaching. In order to make these costs more affordable, they participate in extensive fundraising in the off-season.

The team competes against schools such as Boston College, Boston University, Cornell, Syracuse, Michigan, and Delaware, among others and holds an annual send-off show before Nationals each season. The show is held at the Whittemore Center and is a chance for the team to showcase themselves to the local community, while at the same time performing with other teams and rasing funds for the trip to Nationals.

Just because the team controls itself, does not mean that they train any easier than other teams.

The players have on-ice training three times a week, and off ice training twice a week, in addition to the individual workouts that they are expected to complete.

“Our team works hard and practices like a varsity sport,” comments UNH sophomore, Elise McNamara.

“Its a very competitive team with so many great skaters who dedicate a lot of their college career to being the best skater they can be, and the best team they can be,” says team president Kaitlyn Healy.

Despite the players’ level of devotion, because the team is not considered a varsity sport, they often recieve what they consider to be less than optimal ice time, skating at 5:45 in the morning.

“I often get dressed in the dark to avoid disturbing my roommate,” say Hutson. “We also have sacrificed our social lives on Saturday nights to practice at 8 a.m. on Sunday mornings... Sometimes we must drive to neighboring towns to get ice time.”

Despite these sacrifices and despite being nationally competative in each of their eleven seasons, the team feels that they do not recieve the recognition that they feel they deserve.

“We get no recognition from the university or the students,” says McNamara. “As a role model club sport in the eyes of campus rec, with our, student run organization, we should receive more funding to market our team and pay for ice time to lower our personal dues,"

Many students on campus know nothing, or little of the team.

“I know about them because I have a friend on the team and because I’m a tour guide. Some people know that the team exists, but don’t know much about it,” says UNH student Mallory Izbicki.

When asked about the skating team, undergraduate transfer student Alli Hargrave replies, “I didn’t know there was one!”

The team is optimistic that it will continue to gain momentum and respect in upcoming seasons.

“I think the UNH synchronized skating team will continue to grow and prosper at the national level in years to come,” says graduating senior, Katie McCarter. “This past season was a great transitional year for us with a new coach and dedicated skaters... I know the team will improve on their 10th place finish at nationals next year at the 2011 US National Championships in Ontario, California."

The president of the team is also confident. “Synchronized Skating is one of the fastest growing sports right now and its predicted to become an Olympic Sport within the next few Winter Olympics,” says Healy.

Her final message is hopeful.

“The UNH Synchronized Skating team is an amazing group of dedicated and talented skaters and hopefully in the next few years the community of Durham and UNH will recognize and appreciate it more and more.”