Freshman Molly Menard and junior Brooke Wozniak have had two sport-free days since August. That’s because they are multi-sport athletes competing in volleyball and basketball.

After helping the volleyball team to a 24-11 record, Menard and Wozniak took two days of rest and then hit the hardwood again – this time for basketball practice. They were a month behind everyone else.

“We don’t get a lot of break. I only got two days in between sports,” Menard said. “For basketball, the girls have been training together in the off season for a month while we had volleyball.”

The basketball team started tryouts in mid-October, while Menard and Wozniak just started theirs last week. Menard doesn’t think they are at a disadvantage, however. She says that the transition actually helps give her shoulders and back a rest.

“My shoulder and back problems that I experience during volleyball don’t carry over, because in basketball you’re using different motions and muscles,” she said. “It gives some muscles a rest and works others.”

Menard is used to the transitions. She has played both sports since her freshman year in high school. This season she played left-side hitter for the volleyball team and will play shooting guard for basketball.

Women’s basketball coach Tonja Englund always has liked two sport athletes and is confident Menard and Wozniak will make a smooth transition between the sports, she said. She even prefers multi-sport athletes when recruiting.

“When I recruit kids, that’s something I look for,” Englund said. “A lot of kids come to Eau Claire for the opportunity to play more than one sport.”

Englund points out that because Eau Claire does not give athletic scholarships, it makes some of the better athletes opt for a Div. I or II school where they can get money for their athletic prowess. But the Eau Claire advantage, Englund says, is that students who want to play two or three sports can if they wish.

“It keeps us competitive with bigger schools that may be offering scholarships to only play one sport,” she said. “A lot of students come to Eau Claire because we allow and even encourage them to be multi-sport athletes.”

Going from a fall to winter sport isn’t the only transition Wozniak will make. She will continue her athletic saga by competing in track and field as soon as basketball is over this spring. Sophomore Emilee Planert also will make the switch this spring, going from basketball to softball.

Planert, a shooting guard, plays shortstop for the softball team. She has her share of experience in volleyball and might be a three – sport athlete as well, if it wasn’t for persistent injuries throughout her high school volleyball career. This limited her to softball and basketball, which she played all four years in high school. Planert admits that while injuries may carry over between seasons, more likely the only fallout of being in two sports is fatigue.

While fatigue can limit an athlete’s performance, he or she also has to worry about not being able to practice with the team until his or her first season ends.

“The biggest disadvantage of being in both sports is missing the off-season time with my teammates,” Menard said. “They have been practicing for a month. Right now I’m playing catch up big time.”

Aside from the physical stress these athletes encounter, the academic balancing act may be an equally challenging endeavor.

Menard decided that because she is a freshman, she would only take 13 credits to avoid an overload. She said she is getting used to balancing school and sports, and that professors are very understanding when athletes have to miss class for competitions.

Being on a sports team does involve a lot of traveling. Planert says she sees traveling as a bonus.

Last year over Christmas break, the basketball team traveled to Texas for a few days to face national competition. The softball team traveled to Florida for Christmas break and California for spring break.

It’s not all fun and games during these excursions, Planert said. During spring break, the Blugolds played one-third of their season.

“They play softball year-round (in California), so it is good competition. We played 10 games in five days. We’re not going out there and going to Walt Disneyland. We’re working hard,” she said.

Being a multi-sport athlete requires somebody who can balance rigorous physical activity with school, free time and family time. Menard’s travels are compounded by the fact that she often travels out of town to watch her brother, who races in a NASCAR touring series around the Midwest.

Planert admits that sports may take up most of her time, but that’s the way she likes it.

“I always joke with people when they ask me what I like to do in my free time, because I don’t have any free time,” she said. “Sometimes on Sunday, if I don’t have much homework, I can sit and watch TV.”

Menard says that although the multi-sport lifestyle can sometimes leave you tired and drained, the experience and the fact she always has something to do easily outweighs the negatives.

“I have fun playing volleyball and basketball,” she said. “It may not work for other people, but it definitely works for me. I wouldn’t have it any other way.”