Get to know Lakehead Athletics with Drake Aldred
What is Your Role in Lakehead athletics, Drake?
“I am the athletic and recreation coordinator for the Orillia campus. That means I regulate varsity, rec, intramural, and extramural sports, and fitness.”
Who Else Plays an Important Role in the Lakehead Athletic Community? + How can Students Contact Them if They Need any More Information or are a Current Athlete Searching for More Assistance?
“So, typically I am the principal contact for any sports related questions, but my boss Chris Glover, the associate vice president for athletics, is above me and is always willing to help. His email is cdglover@lakeheadu.ca and my email is daldred@lakeheadu.ca.”
What Athletic Programs are Happening Until the End of the Year?
“Right now we have our extramural Men’s and Women’s hockey, varsity Men’s and Women’s indoor soccer, dance club, and the city of Orillia’s Rec volleyball team that is connected to Lakehead athletics. Moreover, we have a program connected to the Orillia rowing club for some students to train with them. Furthermore, there is a date approaching where we are partnering with students success to do an event called Winterfest. This event will be taking place on February 5th on our ice rink!”
Can People Still Join Intramural Teams at this Time of the Year?
“Volleyball is full, but a few spots in the rowing program remain. Therefore, if anyone is interested in rowing, they are still more than welcome to register. We are attempting to set up more drop in times or potentially a one-day event for some intramurals as well. However, we are just waiting on getting availability back from the city of Orillia.”
Can you Explain the Intramural System for Those who Want to Join Next Year?
“Intramural is a rec style activity, so it is not as competitive as an extramural or a varsity team would be. Typically what we run is based on the feedback from students and what they want to see on campus. We have volleyball, ultimate frisbee, flag football, soccer, dodgeball, and we have done basketball in the past. Therefore, it depends on whatever the student body desires to see. Moreover, we usually run as many events as we can in the fall semester; with the nicer weather, we are able to utilize the outdoors more. The winter does get a little more challenging because we do not have a facility on campus at the moment, but we do our best to get involved in city programming and get time in gymnasiums to run some intramural rec events, such as one- day tournaments. Finally, in the fall semester, we have a campus cup, which is a five-to-six week intramural where we alternate sports every week.”
What is the Difference Between Intramural and Extramural at Lakehead?
“Intramural is once a week and you are competing with people from Lakehead whereas extramural takes more of a tournament style. Therefore, extramural teams are more competition/tryout based that play against different schools throughout the year.”
So, is Extramural Basically just Varsity?
“It is a step down from varsity. Varsity is a lot of league play and a little more structured whereas extramural is under the rec side of the OCAA. Extramural is slightly more competitive than intramural and includes creating a team that will play other schools. Depending on the sport of extramural there may or may not be tryouts. It depends on the number of people interested and the amount of roster spots we are allowed to bring to that specific centre.”
What are the Approximate Costs for Joining an Intramural and Extramural?
“It varies between sports for extramural; however, right now, we only have extramural hockey. For hockey, it depends on how expensive ice time is and how many tournaments we are doing in a year, so it is difficult to imprint a number on extramural costs due to its yearly fluctuations. However, intramural is generally free or will cost between twenty to thirty dollars to sign up, depending on what the activity is.”
Is the Equipment Being Provided for Intramural and Extramural sports?
“Most intramural and extramural equipment is provided. Again, we only have extramural hockey at the moment where we supply jerseys and hockey pucks; however,they are responsible for the rest of their equipment. For intramural, we provide any necessary equipment other than shoes, shinpads, etc.”
How Strict is the Commitment for Intramural and Extramural?
“The commitment for extramural is slightly more rigid than intramural. Extramurals have tournaments and they are usually a full day off campus during class schedules. This may require students to miss a class, but we ensure to communicate these absences to professors and work with them. Extramurals usually have one practice a week whereas intramurals ask that you attend for an hour a week in a modestly competitive environment.”
Are There any Coaches for Intramural and Extramural?
“Yes, extramurals have a coach but intramurals do not. Some intramural teams will have a team captain who takes the role of organizing who will attend each week.”
Are There any Costs that Varsity Players Should be Aware of?
“No, there are not!”
Approximately how Many Games are Scheduled for Varsity?
“For the outdoor soccer season, games will run from September until playoffs, which are at the end of October. Hence, there will probably be two games a week and depending on if we have one or two games a week there will either be two or three practices a week. Therefore, in the fall semester, there will approximately be a four-to-five day a week commitment. However, in the winter, when we move to indoor soccer that is tournament based, it is typically three practices a week including two to four different tournaments depending on the teams success in the games.”
Is the Equipment Being Provided for the Varsity Teams?
“We supply the jerseys, shorts, socks, warm up gear, and training gear, but in terms of their more personal items, like shin pads and cleats, are the student's responsibility.”
What Varsity Teams do we Have Here?
“We currently just have men's and women’s soccer, but we are hoping to expand that in the next couple of years.”
What are the Annual Events for Varsity?
“For varsity right now, there are two invitationals, regionals, and then if we qualify for provincials, but next year we will begin to have home games on campus next to rotary place. We should have at least five home games next year for students to attend.”
What Benefits can Students Gain From Participating in Lakehead Athletics?
“I would say, especially for first year students, it is a great way for people to meet. Especially if you are doing intramural, with the purpose of meeting new people, having fun, and staying active. However, on the more competitive side in terms of our varsity and extramural, it is a great opportunity to participate in sports at a higher level. Moreover, going into next year with home games, it will bring a sense of community to our campus where we can bond over supporting our teams.’’
Are There any Scholarships for Those who are A part of Lakehead Athletics?
“Unfortunately, there are no scholarships for anybody in Lakehead athletics. We have very valuable and prosperous academic scholarship opportunities, but in terms of athletic scholarships, we really only have bursaries that are smaller amounts that athletes can apply for.’’
Where can Students go for Mental Support as an Athlete, Such as Mental Health, Getting Extensions, and Conflict on Their Team, Such as Bullying and Discrimination?
“My door is always open to anyone, whether it is any of our varsity, extramural, or intramural athletes, and even just students in general. I will always help in any way that I can and direct students to any support systems on campus that they may need. If it is mental health they can go to Student Health and Wellness; however, if it is something to do with extensions it depends on what the circumstance may be, but resources may include Student Health and Wellness or Student Accessibility.”
Lastly, Where can athletes go for physical support, such as injuries?
“We currently do not have anything on campus to treat injuries, but we do have an agreement with the Orillia Sports Medicine, which is a couple minutes down the road. It is open to our varsity athletes for any kind of injury they are dealing with. They have physiotherapists and chiropractors, and they help students recover from concussions.”