SPORTS EDITOR – OTONIEL GONZALEZ
ORIGINALLY PRINTED ON ONV 28, 2022
Rattler spirit goes around at St. Mary’s University. The athletic teams receive the student’s support throughout the entire school year. People show up to the games in the cold or the rain. The whole university is behind the sports team. There are several ways to show support. During the school year, St. Mary’s University sports teams carry out numerous activities to raise funds for their respective teams. They work hard to get money for the team. As part of this initiative, the athletics department has a campaign called “Adopt a Rattler.” This campaign encourages individuals to donate money. All the funds they raise go directly to support the team’s uniforms, equipment, training, travel, and much more.
During the 2021-2022 school year, the “Adopt a Rattler” campaign was able to raise over $34,000 directed to help the sports team at St. Mary’s University. This year, the campaign ended on Oct. 16, with 435 donors contributing over $60,000, which exceeded the desired goal by 20%. Individuals are still able to donate.The donors are usually from Texas, but there are contributors all around the US. St. Mary’s teams have donors from California, Arizona, Florida, New York and other states. These contributors range from parents, students, faculty, friends and alumni. All the teams appreciate the support. This year, the e-sports team received the most donations, raising over $10,205 from 33 donors. The team with the second most donations was the women’s softball team, raising almost $8,000 from 82 donors. This year, there was a chance for people to gain Rattler Nation benefits by donating a minimum amount of $200. Some benefits to the Rattler Nation membership includes home game tickets, rattler merchandise and invitations to special events at St. Mary’s University.
“Adopt a Rattler” is a great opportunity that many use to demonstrate their support to the athletic teams. It is a platform from which the athletes receive help from friends, relatives, students, or from passionate sports fans. This initiative “Adopt a Rattler” is also a way to contribute to the family spirit around St. Mary’s University. It is a chance for people to reward the effort of the student-athletes during the entire year without rest. There are no vacations for them. Whether it is during the season or the offseason, these athletes dedicate a large part of their time to training to keep improving to get the best results for the team and the university.
This commitment continues during their vacations, where they must keep a great physical condition and continue training by themselves. For example, the men’s and women’s basketball teams play their regular season during winter break.They stay behind while everyone else goes back home. It prevents them from enjoying their vacations and being with their families, sacrificing everything to represent the gold and blue. Along with the tremendous physical demand, they are still expected to keep a superb academic performance in their courses to be an example for everyone else. To be a student-athlete is truly a full- time job that requires full concentration and commitment.
The “Adopt a Rattler” campaign relieves the teams from intense pressure. It allows them to maintain their focus on winning. Any help is always welcome, it does not matter if it is $100 , $50 or $1. All contributions play an important part in the teams’ success during the season. The fan can see how his donations brought the team closer to victory. When the time arrives, it does not matter when and where: Adopt a Rattler!
