With the fall sports season underway, Yale’s sports teams are looking to increase student participation. How can you spectate?
Alice Graham Martinez September 13, 2024 1:59 AM
Contributing Writer
Courtesy of Yale University Athletics
Students are back on campus, the weather is cooler, and the semester is in full swing – all of which means fall sports season is upon us.
Yale has five fall sports: men’s and women’s soccer, women’s volleyball, field hockey, men’s and women’s cross country, and football. Golf and tennis are considered spring sports but also play competitions in the fall.
The match schedule for each team is Yale University Athletics WebsiteTickets are also available for purchase: Yale students receive one free ticket to every home game.
The athletics office also posts the latest information on upcoming sports. InstagramBoudreau said the office also hopes to use its newsletter, “This Week @ Yale,” to provide more information about Yale events and sports to the community and encourage people to go to games.
To get to the games, students can use the free athletic shuttle, which is also used for club sports. The bus runs from Payne Whitney Gymnasium and makes two stops: the athletic fields outside Smilow Field Center and the Lacrosse Field House.
On football game days, buses begin running at 9 a.m. All home football games kick off at noon at the Yale Bowl.
Field hockey plays at Johnson Field, the softball teams play at DeWitt Stadium, and girls volleyball, gymnastics and basketball all compete at the John Jaley Amphitheater in Payne Whitney Gymnasium.
The athletic department hopes to encourage students and people in the New Haven area to attend the games, and this weekend Yale University field hockey will be playing Brown University at 1pm on Sunday, with kids from two local field hockey clubs expected to leave the arena.
Additionally, Yale’s athletics department will be handing out giveaways at both the field hockey game and the upcoming volleyball game against Colgate. According to Associate Director of Athletics John Judge, giveaways will include, but are not limited to, restaurant gift cards, free meals and free T-shirts.
On August 31, the university welcomed new students to Yale University’s athletic department at the “Yale Up” event, where they competed in basketball and tug-of-war for their college spot. Mary Boudreau, associate director of marketing for the athletic department, called the event a success and said the administration “hopes to spread this energy throughout the year.”
Inspired by last year’s Resident Sports Night, the athletics department will host several College Nights where students can “bring in their college flags and mascots and show their pride in not only Yale but their residential college,” Boudreau said. The first event will be a home football game on Oct. 12 against Dartmouth College.
Judge said he would like to see more students come to games because “they’re the extra teammates we need on our team.” Home-field advantage is important and is created by the fans and the students, he said.
“It’s great to feel the support from my peers. It motivates me to swim as fast as I can,” swimmer Delilah Skystis, 28, told the News.
Yale University football will play its home opener on October 5th against Central Connecticut University.