When many people think of Syracuse University athletics, their minds go straight away to the big names: football, basketball, lacrosse. While those teams have all had their fair share of success in recent years, there’s another sports organization on campus that has been routinely competing on the national stage. SU’s Curling Club made quite the run last year, going all the way to the National Championships as the third overall seed before losing to Harvard following pool play. For members of the team like co-captain Eric Silfies, it’s time to ready up for the coming season as they adjust to a new-look roster.
“We lost a couple of good members last year, but we’re really looking to up or membership this year and really get the next generation of curlers going,” Silfies said.
Though some familiar faces may not be around this fall, Silfies says the team still has a tight bond. For him, traveling to different tournaments, also called bahnspiels, offers a great opportunity to improve on that bond and see friends both new and old.
“The community we have, not even within just the team but everybody at the curling bahnspiels as we call them, that’s what we call the tournaments,” Silfies said. “It’s a very close-knit community so you know almost everyone there every time and you can go back and see your friends.”
It’s that camaraderie to which Silfies credits much of the team’s success. For sophomore Melanie Salas, the welcoming feel of the curling club allows her to open up and enjoy herself on the ice.
“What I use sports as is as a stress relief,” Salas said. “So that’s definitely helped me be myself more on the ice because not only, yeah do I get to meet new people, but I get to see what I’m good at.”
As their new season kicks into gear, the club is looking to build on their strong finish from last year as the march to March and the National Championship begins.