Does Senior Night Affect Athletes' Play?

Their names announced one by one, UMBC women’s basketball seniors Chelsea Barker, Michele Brokans and Meghan Colabella walked to half court, met their family and coach Phil Stern and graciously accepted the applause of those in attendance at RAC Arena on Senior Night.

The event is the same across sports and institutions; seniors playing in their last regular season home game walk to half court, midfield or the 50 yard line, perhaps with a single flower in one hand, receive their recognition and wait for the brief ceremony to end so that the game may begin.

Coaches and underclassmen alike say there is a little something on the line on Senior Night. They want to win for those who are experiencing perhaps the last game of a four-year college year.

“Tonight was about our seniors,” Stern said Wednesday. “And just so you know, Senior Night is a whole day, and we have videos, and kids talking and we talk in the afternoon. It’s a really emotional day for the players, and not just for the seniors but for the underclassmen, who are playing for the seniors, and for the coaching staff who recruited the seniors and want to see them go out on top.”

But does the emotion of the game – often the last at home in a players’ career – impact the way seniors play?

Colabella and Brokans both say yes, though they are excited about the chance to play one more home game, too. As the conference’s No. 1 seed in the tournament, the Retrievers will host the championship game should they advance that far.

“It definitely is (emotional, but) in the back of our mind we were winning this game. There was no option, we were going to be the No. 1 seed and come back and play one more game here as seniors,” said Colabella, who scored 17 points in the 62-55 win. “It was great to send us out with a regular season championship but we knew this would not be the last time we’re playing on our home court.”

But Senior Night is emotionally draining, Stern said, and that can provide an extra challenge, especially in a game that carries with it the importance of a regular season title.

“In the afternoon when the kids talk and we watch their senior video, there’s a lot of tears shed and that emotion does carry over into the game, as much as you are focused on the game,” Stern said.

But even if the emotions were there, Stern’s seniors were apparently able to harness them on the court. But Brokans said it wasn’t easy.

“Thankfully, we did Senior Night celebrations after shoot-around today,” Brokans said. “So all of our emotions were more focused into the game and what need to be done. So I think that definitely helped with our mindset on the game.”

The Retrievers won on their Senior Night, with the senior Colabella standing out above the rest. But not all teams respond so well.

The men’s basketball team lost its Senior Night to Hartford, 64-57. But center Justin Fry, playing in his final year of eligibility as a graduate student, scored 20 points and snared 20 rebounds, setting a school Division I record.

Now, for this week’s list:

Quote of the Week: “We were saying today how if we were just a regular team, in the middle of the pack today, Senior Night would be a little different. But because we had something to strive for and something to look forward to it, was that much sweeter to get this win. … It’s a great feeling coming from freshman year to where we are now. – UMBC women’s basketball guard Michele Brokans, after her team after the Retrievers went 13-3 in America East play.

Line of the Week: Five goals on five shots, two ground balls – UMBC women’s lacrosse senior midfielder Ashley Stodter in a 13-10 win over American.

Top Tweet: “Check out this @AmericaEast video of the @UMBCwbb team's celebration after winning the regular-season title http://youtu.be/FYctD34ssRQ?a”

– @UMBCAthletics after the Retrievers won their first-ever regular season title Wednesday night.

For the Record: Senior UMBC swimming Brad Reitz won gold and broke the school record in the 200-yard butterfly, helping his team win their eighth straight America East Conference Championship. Reitz was also awarded the Male Coach’s Award, given to the senior who accumulates the most points over a four-year career.

Player to Watch: UMBC women’s basketball guard Erin Brown, who is averaging 15.3 point per game against America East Conference opponents, and will take the court for the No. 1 seeded Retrievers in the conference tournament on March 4.

Game to Watch: UMBC Women’s basketball will be on the road, so catch the start of baseball season when the Retrievers play Delaware on March 1 at 3 p.m. at Baseball Factory Field.