Making that game winning goal. Getting the game saving steal to secure the victory for your team.
Scenarios like these are what people live for when playing sports, and Windward Community College students this semester can team up to challenge other community colleges on the island and UH West O’ahu.
Makana Tani and Ka‘ahu Alo have a broad vision, seeing intramurals as more than just students playing sports. “I think it builds a sense of community,” said Alo, student life coordinator, counselor and the leader of WCC intramurals. “Intramurals allow us to build strong bonds and friendships through sports that will last beyond college.”
Tani, who assists Alo with the intramurals, feels the same way, saying that he witnessed friendships born through playing sports last semester. “As their so called ‘coach,’ I saw them come together and help one another, not only on the court but in the classroom too.”
Alo reiterated that “winning isn’t the biggest deal, it’s building those bonds and of course staying on top of your grades.”
Intramurals on the community college level on O’ahu have been offered since 2011 when a student life organization was formed at LCC called IM LeeSports. The purpose of the group was to create an environment where students could participate in sports while being in a safe space, collaborate as a whole and grow as individuals.
Since then, their idea of intramural sports has spread to the community college campuses on the island, and as of fall 2014, that includes WCC.
Sports offered vary by semester. Basketball, volleyball and softball are offered during the spring while flag football, soccer and indoor soccer (also called futsal) are offered in the fall.
Flag football is the first sport to start this semester; it begins on Sept. 20. It’s best to sign up as soon as possible because the seasons go by fast. You have until two weeks before the final game to sign up.
If you are interested in joining intramurals, contact Ka‘ahu Alo at kaahualo@hawaii.edu or see him in his office, which is located in the Student Activity Center upstairs in Hale Ākoakoa.
By Joshua Farias, Ka ‘Ohana Staff Reporter
