What Kind Of Player Am I?

When entering the collegiate level of athletics you never know where to start looking and what division you would fit best in. You may ask yourself what even is the big difference between division l, ll, and lll because some Dll schools are better than Dl schools.

Division l (Dl): This division needs to provide 14 sports in total either offering 7 male teams and 7 female teams or 6 male teams and 8 female teams. This consists of the largest universities in the country, with the larger schools means the better facilities that will meet your needs as a athlete. This is the highest level you can get at the collegiate level so its cut throat competition. Recruiting is how these schools make their teams, they try for the athletes they want no matter the country they are from. These schools given out the biggest scholarships but have a maximum budget so they choose their players wisely. These athletes are focused more on their athletics than school work, so they are setting up the future for their professional appearance. The teams have to play 100% minimum number of games against Dl teams and anything over has to be 50% Dl. These schools are also more media oriented and are the more watched teams as if they are professional sports. This is the level where you are focused on one sport. Examples: Bryant University, Duke University, St. John's University, and Florida A&M University.

Division ll (Dll): This division has to offer 10 sports in total either providing 5 male teams and 5 female teams or 4 male teams and 6 female teams. This contains the smaller universities or colleges in the country. The sports at this level are considered at an intermediate level and you will find more local or instate players. There is no age limit for the players in this division. This could be said to be the happy balance between school and athletics for the students. The school is allowed to provide scholarships or financial aid for students athletic ability but has a maximum budget. The school gets its athletic budget through other educational departments in the school. At this level football and basketball have to at least play 50% of their games against Dll schools but other sports there are no scheduling requirements. This is the level where you are mainly focused on one sport but depending on the school you could play two. Examples: Southern New Hampshire University, Franklin Pierce University, Bentley University, and Rockhurst University.

Division lll (Dlll): This division has to provide 10 sports split evenly with 5 male teams and 5 female teams. This is the largest out of the three divisions consisting of over 420 schools. At this level there isn't much recruiting mainly walk on tryouts or just keeping in contact with the coach. This means there is no scholarships or financial aid for players athletic ability or academic scholarships. At a division lll school the level of play may vary depending on where you go, since the school encourages as much participation in the sports. This is a more academic or community set institution. This is the kind of school you would want to go to if you still want to play sports but need to focus on school more. Also this level is more understanding about playing more than one sport. Examples: Bridgewater State University, Springfield College, Wheaton College, New York University.

New beginning for the Norton Lady Lancers Soccer

This fall soccer season of 2014 the Norton Lady Lancers are putting a young squad out on the field. After graduating 11 seniors its hard to determine the best players to fill those shoes. After having a long week of tryouts and double sessions the coaches still had tough decisions to find the best team to put out there for such a competitive league. The team will be welcoming 8 new players to the varsity program. With such a young team its will be a learning process and will take time to get all the kinks out but they show a will to do it.

Starting off the season with what you could say are the best teams in the Tri Valley league the lady lancers soccer program had a difficult start to the season. Going into the first game playing the defending league champion Medway, the team fell short of what was needed to get the win in a 5-2 deficit. After the lose the girls moved onto Medfield coming out with a new attitude and trying new players in positions they may not be comfortable, as they try to hold off the Warriors they end up losing 3-1. Into their third game of the season facing the Dover Sherborn girls, the team to knock out the Lancers of the tournament, the girls go in knowing this will be a challenging game but still had their heads high. Losing that game 3-2 Norton Coach Evertt Clark looked to mix around players and change the formation based on the next game which was Hopkinton. The girls went in knowing this team has been strong in the past but felt confident with the work they've put in at the previous practices. Coming out of this game with  0-0 tie that's all the girls needed to put them on the right track.

 The team knows they have to get 18 points to qualify for the state tournament and with having 1 after 4 games they know it will not be easy especially replaying the teams they already lost to but still have a positive mind they can do it. "There are times of beautiful soccer so we know we can do it but the girls just have to set their mind to it and want that success we know we are capable of." said by Norton senior captain Holly Beaucage. The game of soccer is hard to read since teams can be very inconsistent and you never know who could be playing in that game. Injuries have been a weakness for the lady lancers with having 3 injured at the moment, key contributors to the program. "If everyone stays healthy and we continue with the improvements that were already shown I believe we will have a better record that is a reflection of what we are capable of." said Norton Coach Evertt Clark. The future of the season looks bright for the Norton Lady Lancers soccer program with the attitudes they have moving forward onto the next games soon to reach the middle of the season and the try to clench the sport in the state tournament.