Student Shares Experience as Two Sport Athlete
Kennedy Halsmer is a two sport athlete in swimming and rugby. Photo courtesy of UWSP Athletics.

Student Shares Experience as Two Sport Athlete

Kennedy Halsmer, sophomore engineering major, has become an expert at managing her time between rugby games, swim meets and academics.

Halsmer has been swimming competitively for 14 years and entered college with the intention of being on the swim team. As a senior in high school, Halsmer was introduced to rugby and enjoyed the sport enough to play for the club team at the University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point.

As a two-sport athlete, Halsmer has to balance her time between swim and rugby practices. Since rugby is a club sport, Halsmer is only required to attend two practices a week during the season. However, rugby’s fall season does overlap with the swim season, which starts in September.

“I think if I had to pick one to care about more, it would probably be swimming because, I have done it for fourteen years. If I had to pick one that is more fun to do I would pick rugby,” Halsmer said.

Halsmer swims the 200-yard backstroke, 100-yard backstroke and the individual medley. The two rugby positions that she plays are wing and flanker.

“In rugby, you are used to getting a certain position that you play, so it’s hard to relate to the other positions that people play,” Halsmer said.

Halsmer admitted that there are times when swim meets overlap with rugby games. She usually opts to attend the swim meets over the rugby games, but when she does miss a swim meet for rugby her coach is understanding.

She is appreciative that she gets to compete for two different teams at UWSP.

“I came in and instantly had 70 friends. There are around 60 people on the swim team and about 20 to 30 on the rugby team. When I am around swim people all the time, it’s nice to go and hang out with rugby people,” Halsmer said.

Gray Zischke, head coach for the women’s rugby team, said that previously there have been other swimmers on the rugby team. However, Halsmer is currently the only women’s rugby player that is involved in two sports.

“Swimmers, I find, tend to be able to concentrate a little bit better and are more focused on training and playing,” Zischke said.

Like Halsmer’s swim coach, Zischke is also understanding of her commitment to the swim team.

“My standpoint is that I’ve always honored the varsity commitment as number one and worked around that,” Zischke said.

Halsmer and her rugby teammates will head off to their first game of the spring season against UW-Madison on Saturday, Mar. 11.

 

Caroline Chalk

Reporter

cchal845@uwsp.edu

 

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