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Dan Cardone :
A few years ago, I had a multi-sport athlete come into the athletic office. She was accepted into the US Air Force Academy, and wanted to continue her athletic career. I asked, "which are you going to choose to do?" She had played tennis, basketball, and track at our school. Her answer, "I am going to play rugby." She went on to become an All-American in that sport.

This path opened my eyes to athletes who had the desire to continue their athletic pursuits at the collegiate level. I began to think about helping more athletes continue with an undertaking they enjoyed, or starting on a new path. My research led me to understand that club sports at the collegiate level are huge.

For example, the University of North Carolina has 42 club sport offerings. There are traditional offerings such as baseball, womenʼs volleyball, and rowing. There are also opportunities to participate in equestrian, rodeo, triathlon, fencing, and even sailing. From my perspective, these opportunities allow college students to compete in sports they'll play the rest of their lives.

Club sports have been shaped in the United States by tradition and popularity. In many instances they are not mainstream enough to become an intercollegiate sport. Yet they offer a number of advantages to the college student who wants to maintain their athletic career without the myriad of strings that are attached to NCAA student-athletes. Collegiate sports are also year-round endeavors, while club sports operate more informally and are seasonal while providing meaningful competition.

My daughter attended American University, and wanted to continue to play tennis. Her academics were challenging, and so the idea of being at practice every day, doing off- season conditioning, and taking on a demanding travel schedule seemed overwhelming. For her, club sports were a great option. In this arena, she could scratch her competitive itch in an environment where academics really do take precedence over athletic pursuits.

Maria Cardone :
I attended American University, which is located in Washington, D.C. and is part of the Patriot League. I played tennis in high school, but entering my freshman year at American University, I retired my racket and made the decision to focus on my studies.

As I grew older and more comfortable with college, I began to miss tennis and wanted to get back into the sport. However, American had eliminated the varsity tennis program in 2006. In 2008 a group of people reintroduced tennis at the university, this time in club form. So my junior year, I successfully tried out for and made the club tennis team.

Everyone was incredibly friendly, incredibly relaxed, and no one was too competitive. What sold me was that tennis was competitive, but took place in a more relaxed atmosphere than it would be for an NCAA Division I scholarship athlete.

Selected by my teammates to be the girls' team captain for my senior year, I had to take on the role of player-coach. I conducted tryouts, organized practice, and had input into the schedule. My main goal was to make the team competitive while making tennis fun and enjoyable. Club teams allow you to miss matches and practices if your academic schedule is too demanding.

A real advantage of where I attended school was that there are a number of club tennis programs in the Washington, D.C. area. Georgetown, George Mason, George Washington, and Maryland were all on our schedule. This virtually eliminated the need to miss classes as a lot of NCAA athletes do. Since we were responsible for supporting our team financially, competing locally meant reduced travel costs.

I am happy to report that in the 2010-2011 school year we participated in two USTA Mid-Atlantic Region Tournaments, and had a winning record. For a team with few resources, we (meaning the players) put forth a well-organized program. Those who play club sports at the collegiate level do so purely for the love of sport.