Cougars soccer going strong
The soccer team has had a good start to the season
Sports at the University of Regina is a unique space for all. It binds hearts and people together. Carrying a long legacy, the University of Regina women’s soccer team has come far since their inception. They have undergone a major evolution defeating stereotypes and proving societal norms wrong. The team represents unity. Players from different provinces, families, and backgrounds come together for one purpose, one goal: to further the University of Regina women’s soccer team.
The 2023 Fall term saw an eventful beginning for this Cougars team with a score of 1-1 with both University of Alberta and University of Winnipeg. The players are continuing to put in the work and are keeping the sportsmanship for future games to succeed. Remaining grateful to coach Astrid Baecker and the all-female staff for the continued support, Cassidy Fedoruk, goalkeeper, said: “It’s really cool to have the female empowerment and the way she [Baecker] talks to us with respect. […] Her coaching style works really well.” Fedoruk has been associated with sports since a very young age, playing games like hockey, volleyball, lacrosse, and ultimate frisbee, though she loved soccer the most and “stuck with it.”
Getting into the Cougars soccer team was a journey of connecting with the coaches through emails when she had seen them playing against the University of Manitoba. She had also connected with one of the coaches when she had gone out to play in the Westerns and eventually became a part of the team. “The team is so welcoming and makes everything worth all the hard work. Playing soccer all the time is obviously a huge bonus but just the environment that the team has, […] is just amazing” said Fedoruk.
“The team culture is very connected. We like being around each other,” she continued. “You’ll see us hanging out outside of soccer. […] We’re always there for each other, […] just one big team. Everyone gets along and genuinely enjoys being around each other.” One of the highlights of the team is the unity displayed without the presence of status and hierarchy among players from different years in the university.
The Cougars women’s soccer team has been an excellent example of a for-the-community club sport through their different acknowledgements of National Day for Truth and Reconciliation on September 30, Breast Cancer Awareness on October 1, and so on. With this approach, the team is all set out to be one of the finest clubs on campus.
The sport involves competitiveness, and the nature of agility that it comes with requires the team to continue the camaraderie and have each other’s back and help each other learn. “I love working for something and having an end goal. Show up on time, get my physical activity in, […] all those things push me to keep playing,” said Fedoruk.
Fedoruk finds her inspiration and role model in Jeff Seney, Fedoruk’s previous goalkeeping coach, who told her: “You don’t need to make every save. You just have to make one more than the other goalie.” She finds her support from family and friends, especially her mom, who has been with her throughout that has kept her going. Besides the sport inclination, players could find it difficult to juggle sport and academia. Fedoruk balances it all through rigorous planning and effective time management giving her adequate time to practice and study.
Sports enables individuals to overcome challenges, break barriers, and inspire each other. University of Regina’s women’s soccer team is a place where one can check off those boxes and nourish their enduring spirit.
