Andie Thornton, a senior from Franklin, Tenn., had to learn the difficult balance of dedicating time to her school work, her soccer team and her social club.
Thornton said she found stability between soccer and her social club, Phi Sigma, when she became an “inactive” member her junior year.
Inactive members, according to Thornton, do not pay dues but can still attend events by paying a higher entry fee than the active members.
Thornton joined Phi Sigma in the spring of her freshman year, partially because her older sister, Meredith Thornton, was a senior at the time and was also a member of the club.
“I was a freshman looking to find a group of friends,” Thornton said.
Thornton had her heart set on attending Lipscomb for the spiritual aspect of the university before she was even old enough to be recruited for soccer. Even with offers to play soccer at other schools, Thornton ultimately decided on Lipscomb.
“I would have come here regardless of soccer,” Thornton admits. “That was just a bonus.”
Thornton said her four years at Lipscomb have shown her where her priorities lie.
“The older I got, the harder classes got, the more intense soccer got, and the less time I had to devote to the club,” Thornton said.
With almost 17 years of soccer under her belt, Thornton soon found it had to have priority over her social club. But as a graphic design major, Thornton learned early that even soccer wasn’t her top priority. School came first.
Even through her semesters of being an active member, Thornton said she did not devote the time that Phi Sigma required. However, that is not to say she doesn’t have any good memories.
“Even though I only made it to one formal, it was really a good time,” Thornton said, “and pledging is always fun.”
“Pledging was so fun, yet awful. It’s that memory you look back on and laugh,” she said.
Thornton joined Phi Sigma to help identify herself with a group of friends. However, once soccer and school began to consume her life, she said her identity became closer with her soccer teammates.
Social clubs and sports are not always an either/or decision, according to Thornton. “I have seen it work both ways,” she said.
“I would recommend it (being in social clubs) to players who want to have a group of friends apart from their team,” Thornton said, explaining that having different friends is not meant to minimize relationships with teammates. “But sometimes it is refreshing to have a separate group of friends.”