Mustang Spotlight: International Athletes Navigating COVID-19
6/4/2020 12:00:00 AM | General, Men's Soccer, Women's Basketball, Beach Volleyball
It's 3:30 p.m. in San Luis Obispo and Cal Poly men's soccer senior defender Josh Graham is completing homework. At the same time and the following morning in Australia, women's basketball freshman guard Abbey Ellis is waking up. And in Burlington, Ontario, Mustang beach volleyball sophomore Vanessa Roscoe is sitting down to dinner before studying and catching up with friends via FaceTime.
Three months ago, the three Cal Poly student-athletes shared a campus and athletics facilities. In the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic, however, the three are navigating different paths toward normalcy in different parts of the world.
--
After opening the 2020 Big West Conference Tournament with victories against Long Beach State (March 10) and UC Irvine (March 11), the Cal Poly women's basketball program was preparing for a semifinal matchup against top-seeded UC Davis at the Honda Center in Anaheim. On Thursday, March 12, however, the Big West announced that the remainder of the women's tournament and the entire men's tournament would be abandoned.
"Once everything started to be canceled and flights began closing, my coaches and family were eager for me to come home so I could be safe," said Ellis, who finished second in Cal Poly's lineup this past year with 15.6 points per game. "It was an easy decision. I knew in the back of my mind that this virus would last a long time and it would be safest and most beneficial for me to be with my family in a pandemic."
On a flight that included other Australians playing collegiately in the United States, Ellis returned home on March 17.
Back in San Luis Obispo, the Cal Poly beach volleyball program was preparing to face three nationally-ranked programs at Pepperdine on March 14. One day after canceling the Big West Tournament, however, the conference's board of directors moved its previous decision to postpone all springs sports to canceling competition entirely.
"(My roommates) were all going home as they lived close and had spring break coming up," said Roscoe, who began the 2020 season with a 5-4 record competing with two different partners. "A large factor that went into my decision was the closing of borders. I didn't want to get stuck alone in residence for months, so I tried to get home quickly to make sure I had somewhere comfortable to stay."
Graham, who started 16 of 17 matches for the Mustangs last fall after transferring from St. Louis Community College, believed it would be better to stay in the United States as to have access to Cal Poly's training facilities.
"The lockdown in England is much stricter, allowing only one outside exercise a day," said Graham, who stays in contact with his family through FaceTime. "Another factor is the weather. I honestly did not want to sit at home in the rain during this time. I also have a girlfriend here who I've isolated with and I didn't want to be away from her for so long."
--
With spring seasons canceled and fall competitions tentative, Cal Poly student-athletes – whether residing on campus, near campus or back home – had academic responsibilities to contend with once the university's spring quarter resumed on March 29. The university quickly moved to set up an online class and coursework structure.
For Graham, having an entire quarter's coursework laid out in advance allowed him to complete assignments at his own pace. A psychology major, he attends just one online class on Tuesdays and Thursdays and takes exams online through Canvas.
For Ellis – 17 hours ahead of her teammates near campus – timing presented challenges. She watches recorded class lectures a day after they'd been presented and emails questions to instructors. She makes daily checklists to stay organized and turn in coursework on time.
"Sometimes I forget I'm a day ahead and end up submitting coursework early," Ellis said. "Unfortunately, some of my midterms and final assignments have been in real time and so I've had to wake up at 1 a.m. and 3 a.m. to take tests. This is very hard, but through studying, I don't really worry about how tired I am as I feel like I'm ready to take them."
Three hours ahead of Cal Poly in Ontario, Roscoe's online class structure allows her to submit assignments via Canvas and through Dropbox. The use of discussion boards allows professors to post questions with students required to reflect on an answer by a set deadline.
"Sometimes online classes have been difficult to navigate and I've missed one or two assignments because I couldn't find where they were on Canvas. Thankfully, my professors have been extremely understanding," said Roscoe, majoring in communications. "One big negative of online learning is the absence of socialization, especially because I'm taking mostly general education classes. Normally, this would be an opportunity for me to meet new people outside of my major, but with online learning I don't even know what my classmates look like."
--
Away from campus and without face-to-face access to coaches and Cal Poly's strength and conditioning and training room facilities, athletes are maintaining their skills and team relations through a variety of means.
The men's soccer program has a Zoom video conference call team meeting every Sunday at 5 p.m. As for on-field work preparing for a highly tentative season, Graham – when available – practices with teammates who have remained in the area.
"But we still follow the social distancing rules," Graham notes. "Conditioning and fitness is a big passion of mine besides soccer, so I have many workouts I've found – bodyweight CrossFit-type workouts, in addition to various running workouts, such as sprints and 10K runs."
Ellis has also been working out with teammates, albeit former ones near her Melbourne-adjacent hometown of Yallambie.
"I've also been doing running and lifting workouts whenever I can and making sure my body does get a rest," said Ellis, who led Cal Poly in minutes played as a freshman last year. "I'm also fortunate to have a basketball hoop at my house, so I can get some shots up and not lose my touch."
Social media has been the predominant medium to help Ellis keep in touch with teammates and bridge the time difference. Weekly Zoom meetings have also been scheduled between the coaching staff and players to check in on academics, workouts, watch game film and allow open dialogue for players to discuss their feelings regarding the current situation.
Roscoe keeps in contact with Cal Poly beach volleyball head coach Todd Rogers through texts and email. However, staying in touch with teammates that reside in three different time zones across North America has presented greater difficulties.
As for workouts, Roscoe notes that "it's been difficult to strength train without a proper gym. I have been doing more body weight and cardio workouts to stay in shape. I live in the city, so it's been difficult to play any sports because there is no beach and any type of recreational sport court is closed."
Roscoe, however, has found a workaround.
"I've always liked tennis and my mum built me a contraption (similar to this) so that I can play by myself on the road, so I try to go out and do that as much as possible because tennis and volleyball have a lot of the same movements. I use tennis to keep my arms limber and my feet fast and I've really been enjoying experimenting with a new sport."
--
Despite the transitions, Ellis, Roscoe and Graham have been able to find some positives from the current experience, namely, reconnecting with family and friends and appreciating the new-found downtime.
"Being in a different country for college, I really missed (family) and so it's nice to come back to home-cooked meals, binging Netflix with my sisters and seeing old friends," Ellis said. "Luckily, given the current situation in Melbourne right now, restrictions are eased, so I can get out more to see family and friends as well as work out."
Roscoe echoed Ellis, also noting an appreciation for a relaxed schedule.
"I really think this has brought a lot of people closer. I'm so fortunate to have this time with family," Roscoe said. "I'm also thankful for the free time. It has allowed me to slow down and learn to appreciate the little things in life. Sometimes when I'm away at school with practice and classes and travel, my weeks go by fast and this situation has allowed me to slow down. Even though I'm missing things I love to do, I'm also discovering new things that I enjoy that I likely never would have had the time for without these circumstances."
For Graham, the positives also included having time to refine his soccer skill set.
"I've had time to purely focus on my weaknesses, such as my left foot, and I'm clearly seeing the benefits every week as I go onto the field," Graham said.
--
In late May, the NCAA Division I Council voted to allow student-athletes in all sports to participate in voluntary athletics activities on campus, beginning June 1. However, the prospect of fall competition – even without fans in closed-door stadiums and arenas – remains unclear.
Graham maintains a residence near Cal Poly's campus and would be ready should fall camps open in early August.
Roscoe and Ellis, however, face the added hurdle of first returning to the United States.
"As of right now, I have a flight booked to San Luis Obispo for September 15th," Roscoe said. "I'd like to stay in Canada over the summer so I can work and be with my family. Hopefully by September the borders will be open and the team will be allowed to train so I can come back as planned. I'm really looking forward to it as I'll be moving into a house with a few girls from the team which will be lots of fun."
Ellis, meanwhile, was hoping for an earlier return to campus.
"Summer training begins in late July. However, I doubt borders will be open by then," Ellis said. "So right now, we may be looking as far as September, but we really don't know. Hopefully, I get back as soon as possible."
