It's all so green and beautiful

On Saturday afternoon, about 10,000 people will be drinking here

The ever athletic Ross Chapman gives you a plethora of reasons to attend this week’s games.

It’s that time of year again. The posters are going up while the supply of beer in local stores is going down. This Saturday, everybody’s getting ready to go up to Baker Athletic Complex on the fan bus, dressed in all of the Columbia University merchandise they can dig out of their closets. Our Ivy League rival Dartmouth is coming to town while we put homecoming, parents’ weekend, and senior day together into one beautiful athletic experience. You might not be a sports fan, but if there’s one time to support the team, it’s right now. Get there early, stay there late, and cheer like it’s the Super Bowl. Go support a winning tradition. Go support the f***ball team, in the European sense.

Be there, when Columbia women’s soccer hosts Dartmouth at 4 PM on Saturday. Here’s why you should be excited:

  1. Columbia athletics are better than you think. This soccer team has played 13 games this season and has only lost two. Neither of the losses came at home. They’re second in the Ivy League (tied with Princeton) and are in a position to battle Harvard at the end of the year for the title if they continue their success.
  2. It’s Senior Day! Before the game, the Lions will honor all ten members of the 2015 class. If you have any senior friends on the team, congratulate them at the game!
  3. The Columbia defense ranks at #15 nationally with 0.567 goals allowed per game. The Lions will not be blown away by the Big Green.
  4. Goalkeeper Allison Spencer earned her second Ivy League Player of the Week award last weekend with her shutout performance against Princeton. Also on the honor roll is Holly Neshat, Ivy League Rookie of the Week, who scored the only goal in our 1-0 defeat of the Tigers.
  5. Saturday is Columbia’s last home game of the season, so you’ll have to wait until next September if you miss this game for more women’s soccer action.
  6. If you’re looking to get plastered with friends, you can avoid stumbling onto campus and stay for the men’s soccer game against Dartmouth at 7 PM.
  7. Columbia spreads the wealth; members of all four eligible graduating classes have contributed goals and assists to the Lions offense this season, meaning that one soccer player on your floor is not going to be on the sideline all game.
  8. Get away from the constant hollering about head coaches and athletic directors at Robert Kraft Field, because the new soccer coach Tracy Bartholomew, was hired just last winter. See how some new leadership can revitalize an athletic program.
  9. The Deli on the corner of Broadway and 218th street changed its layout. Everything’s flipped around and it looks respectable and oh my gosh, you guys, get a sandwich there, it looks so nice.
  10. We should be working to support our good teams. Just because soccer isn’t a big source of revenue for the university doesn’t mean we should all ignore a potential championship team. Reward these student-athletes for a great year of soccer.

Image via Bwog