SIZ IN G UP THE C OMPE TI TION On fall weeknights, the Ganus Athletic Center buzzed with students playing for or cheering on a club team. Within Harding's 14 men's social clubs, about half were classified as large while the others were classified as small. Men's large social club Beta Omega Chi president and senior Dan Schweikhard said large clubs naturally had more people interested in sp01ts and looking to be competitive. For some sports, Beta Omega Chi had up to five teams playing on different levels. "We always have people in the stands watching, so even if you don't play, it's always fun," Schweikhard said. "It's another good excuse just to spend time around other members of the club." Though the small club tournament brackets were not as expansive and most small clubs had one team instead of multiple, the competitive spirit was still strong within each group according to junior Braden Stevens. Stevens served as the president for the men's small social club Kingsmen and said for him, club sports were more about getting a chance to enjoy being a part of something and less about coming away with a win. "It is competitive between small clubs, but it's harder to build a competitive team since you don't have as big of a pool of players," Stevens said. "The main focus ends up being to have fun." Schweikhard said even before joining Beta Omega Chi, sports influenced his opinion on clubs, even though he was not specifically looking to be a part of a group of athletes. "When the whole club process is going on and people are trying to choose a club, sometimes prospective members will go to games of the clubs they're interested in," Schweikhard said. "You can see how the group acts in a normal situation. For me, that was a way that sports influenced the club that I picked." Men's small social club Delta Chi Delta's president and junior Caesar Swaby said for the men of his club, playing sports meant living out their goal of brotherhood. "We try to perpetuate this idea that everyone has a place with us," Swaby said. "We have 14 members. We have one member who loves sports. So we all play sports." Dy Uhhie Turner
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