USF softball team discusses importance of mental health in college athletics

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SIOUX FALLS, S.D. (Dakota News Now) – The University of Sioux Falls softball crew has dealt with a whole lot of adversity this past spring subsequent the suicide of one particular of their recruits, Paige Roessner. Immediately after the tragedy, the Cougars have been faced with hefty thoughts for the remainder of their year.

Photojournalist Sam Tastad sat down with USF gamers and coaches to chat about Paige’s impact on them.

“Mental well being is just not some thing talked about with sports,” reported USF senior Kylie Madrid.

“To come to feel like there are younger individuals of any age or gender that come to feel like any problem is also massive, that taking their daily life is the respond to, that is genuinely really hard,” said USF softball head mentor Shannon Pivovar.

“I had a streak with Paige, and I was practically chatting to her a 7 days right before, and that I was so fired up to engage in with her and be her teammate. Her smile lit up the space,” claimed Madrid.

“I constantly experienced in the again of my head that Paige was seeing more than we do and just be the very best man or woman we are simply because she was this sort of a sweet man or woman,” claimed USF senior Kait Van Der Zwaag.

“The considered of anyone that 1 of us loves, and it could have been any of us sensation that way is terrible and you don’t want anybody to really feel that way. Knowing that one of us could, actually brought us alongside one another. We really achieved out to just about every other and explained to just about every and everyone just one of us we liked each and every other,” mentioned USF senior Kylan Straight.

“If we experienced any other blend of little ones this calendar year, I never know we get by the calendar year,” claimed Pivovar.

“I imagine it was tough for some of us to open up about it, but we had really excellent methods in our coaches and administration that advised us if you will need anything, if you require another person to discuss to, please allow us know,” reported Straight.

“It’s absolutely hard to converse about, when you glimpse at a faculty athlete, you assume them to have every thing,” explained Van Der Zwaag.

“One the matters we seriously preach, is you are a human to start with,” said Pivovar.

“Like we really don’t want to reach out sometimes, and we just put tension on ourselves and to know it is just a game, you are a human, and you make errors, but placing your mental wellness initial and it’s alright to not be all right,” reported Madrid. “You go by way of so a great deal each and every week, each and every day regardless of whether it is school or sports activities. You are not on your own in your battle. We all go by way of stuff we do not know about.”

“It’s a dilemma and it is practically terrifying how common or how substantially it is going on. To know that other applications have been heading via anything related that we did seriously strike close to house,” mentioned Straight.

“My role, as of course, It’s X’s and O’s on the diamond, but it is way extra than that and it is creating positive they are all right off the discipline,” claimed Pivovar.

“It’’s alright to experience whatever you are emotion, but absolutely know you are not alone. Like no matter if you feel like you are alone, you are absolutely aren’t and any person out there cares and enjoys you. We realized that we could look to our still left and suitable and have someone there who enjoys us and could lean on when we could not lean on ourselves,” reported Straight.

“We really don’t want you to be a helmet decal. We really do not want to be carrying all around people’s jerseys. We want you listed here. We want bodily bodies below. We want you in that jersey when you get listed here, in our dugout with our workforce, with our loved ones, and even though we are going to bear in mind Paige and consider about her all the time and enjoy for her, it would be a whole lot better if she was in this article to perform with us,” reported Pivovar.

In spite of their trials, the Cougars finished the period solid, coming just a sport shy of the NSIC championship.

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