A Taste of the Big City with a Splash of Down Home Comfort

Nov. 7 

When most people think of Division III athletics, their first instinct is to regard the student-athletes as less talented with fewer opportunities than their Divisions I and II counterparts.  Sure we can’t recruit big-name football players and give them full-ride athletic scholarships, but this past weekend Carnegie Mellon proved that our athletes are treated just as well, if not better, than top Division I athletes.

Carnegie Mellon is a member of the University Athletic Association (UAA); a conference that promotes the concept of Division I athletics with a Division III education.  Last weekend, our men’s and women’s soccer teams traveled to New York and Boston to compete in two important UAA matches.  Unlike many Division III schools, we have the privilege to travel by plane to most of our conference games.  The trip started Thursday and after a short plane ride to New York City we were dropped off in downtown Manhattan to eat at the locals’ favorite family restaurant, Carmine’s.  We were served a feast of salads, pastas, and desserts on the Upper West Side of Manhattan that most college students would only dream about.  After some serious carbo loading, we headed to our hotel to get prepared for our game the next day.

Friday (Halloween) was a success for both teams, as we came away with a 1-0 victory and the men’s team defeated the NYU Violets 2-0.  To celebrate our success we drove to Scarsdale, N.Y. to our manager’s home.  Her parents welcomed us into their home and fed us a home-cooked meal we won’t soon forget.  Between the silly trick-or-treating and the competitive games of “spoons,” I felt like I was home, but instead of two sisters I had 19.

Our down-home experience didn’t end in Scarsdale.  On Saturday we took a bus from New York to Boston but made a stop in East Greenwich, Rhode Island to do what we do best, eat.  With such a diverse team, we are fortunate enough to have families all over the country and in Rhode Island we found ourselves a home away from home with teammate Kate Smith’s family.  After another meal of pasta, soup and salad we were on the road again to Boston.  We were welcomed into Boston with fresh-baked cookies from the hotel.  After a good night’s rest we awoke to a full breakfast buffet—including made to order omelets, pancakes, and French toast.  We tied Brandies University that day, and although we were not satisfied with the result, it was overall a successful weekend.     

With some time to kill before our 9:00 p.m. flight back to Pittsburgh we took a trip to Faneuil Hall to get a real feel for the city and of course, do a little shopping.  Many of the girls on the team had never been to Boston so it was a great experience to see one of the oldest cities in the United States and experience the hustle and bustle of Quincy Marketplace.  After tasting some authentic New England clam chowder and bubble tea, it was time to head back to Pittsburgh – and reality.  We boarded the plane, pulled out our pencils and opened our textbooks; it was back to our life at CMU.

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