By Jaclyn Biggers
SMCGaels.com Correspondent

MORAGA, Calif. -- When a Division I student-athlete comes to mind, two common perceptions are brought forward. On one hand, a student-athlete is thought to have two full-time jobs – stressful academics and physical and time demanding athletics. On the other, many are thought to have the easy way out in terms of academics – their sport is the priority, and anything school related falls by the wayside. While the latter is constantly a controversy at schools throughout the nation, the former is true here at Saint Mary's, as it should be. Many schools are in ongoing trouble with the NCAA for academic violations – students go in place of the student athletes for test taking, inflation of grades and the intimidation of teachers who refuse to do this – the list goes on. While this undoubtedly happens, this taints what it truly means to be a student athlete.

SMC is extremely unique in its size and Division I classification – most schools similar to Saint Mary's are at the Division III level. Not only are we in Division I, but we can compete with these traditional powerhouses, as we have proved time and time again. But SMC is more importantly unique in its preservation of the student-athlete. Speaking from my own experience, it was very clear from my first moments here at school that academics were the priority. Yes, we have two hours of practice and an hour lift even in the off-season. Add in training room time before and after, and you've got up to five hours a day of required and non-required time devoted to athletics. Does this take away time that we could be studying? Absolutely. But does it take away all of it? Absolutely not. If being a student-athlete teaches you one thing, it's time management. SMC does not continuously send a large amount of athletes to professional leagues, although we proudly do have our few. But our athletes not having a guaranteed professional playing career after graduation is not the reason why they perform well academically. It is the culture fostered here at school. Small class sizes, invested professors, and challenging courses are what keep students dedicated to their academics, athletes well included.

Although SMC makes it a priority and necessity that academics stay the most important aspect of the student-athlete's life, I feel as if many students, faculty, and the community in general still do not know just what exactly it means to be a Division I athlete at this school. All of our sports are extremely different – whether it be season, team size, gender, practice schedule, lifting – but every single one has time commitment in common.

To give a little insight, the following post is a "Day in the Life" of Rachel Sunday, my teammate and SMC lacrosse team captain. Women's lacrosse is not a high-profile sport (yet!), and lacrosse in general is still a growing sport, so this post not only shows what a typical day is like for a Division I athlete, but one of a sport that many do not pay as much attention to. I followed Rachel, or just "Sunday" as everyone calls her, around for a typical Thursday. We are in our off-season, but as all athletes know, there really is no such thing. My teammate, Megan Armes, supplied the photography, and with her snapping pictures and my asking questions and directing, Sunday was quite the trooper for the day.

I hope this series is as fun to look at as it was to shoot, and gives a glimpse into the daily life of a D-I athlete. Enjoy!

Typical Thursday" (Dec. 5)

8:45 a.m.: Wake-up call. Sunday makes a quick breakfast – two eggs over-easy, or "dippy eggs" as she calls them, dipping toast in the yolks - throws on some sweats, and heads to school in a carpool with teammate Allie DeBruhl. No time for a lengthy breakfast or glamorous outfit, as waking up at 8:45 is early enough as it is.

9:45: First Class - Badminton. As a Kinesiology-Sports Management major, Sunday is finishing up her last required Activity Course. The class is one hour, two times per week, and is a fun and lively way to start the day. Her partner is basketball player Stephen Holt, and they don't like to lose.

11:30: Second Class- American Journalism. Sunday works on her radio project during the class, preparing for finals. Her radio show is on the topic of the cutting of the Kinesiology activity classes, which obviously has some relevance to her. Sunday and her group have been conducting faculty interviews, piecing the work together on Garage Band, and adding their own commentary.

1:15: Third Class- Sports Law. The class is presenting its final projects, which Sunday has already done, so she watches others in class today. This project was extremely time consuming but rewarding once finished. Sunday did hers on negligence in athletics.

2:50: Lunch Time – Finally done with classes for the day, Sunday heads to Saga for a quick lunch and of course, socializing, as you can never walk into Saga without immediately spotting ten people you know. She gets her usual sandwich – salami, provolone, onions, lettuce and mayo – and sits down with some teammates.

3:30: Work Out. Since it's Dead Week (finals week) for athletics, there is no practice today. Although some days off are absolutely necessary, today is not one of those days. Sunday's plan includes some solo sprints, followed by a lift with teammate and roommate Anna Turpit.

The sprints are "300's", which entails sprinting from the Goal Line Extended (a lacrosse line near the end-line) to the 30 yard line and back – five times. That's one set. And we do 4 as one of our fitness tests. Sunday has Compartment Syndrome, which limits her ability to run for extended periods of time. She pushes it to her absolute limit every single time, and her limits are set at her maximum pain capacity. If she's not running a set with us, you can be guaranteed to see her holding a plank until each and every teammate crosses the line.

The Power Plant lift is next. With the music blasting and countless other students in the Plant as well, Sunday and Turpit get going on one of our regular lifts. These are designed for us by our weight-lifting coach, Danny, and it's safe to say almost all of us know them by heart now. Today's lift includes a warm-up series of plyometrics and jogging, front squat, push-press, kettle-bell, land-mines, box-jumps, toe-touches and an ab-circuit. It's different doing it without the team, but it must get done nonetheless.

7:00-11:00: Homework (on and off). Sunday lives with teammates Anna Turpit and Julia Holton, and they usually do homework together at night. Snack and "Scandal" – the addictive tv show – breaks are necessary, but for the most part, this is homework time. Preparing to head into the thick of finals, nights like tonight are full of study guides, memorizing, and final projects. It seems never ending, but the thought of going home to Pittsburgh in just a few days keeps her going. She doesn't go home for Thanksgiving Break, so she's been looking forward to this Winter Break since summer.

6:00: Dinner. Sunday lives in an apartment off campus for the first time this year, and loves having her own kitchen. She had one in the on-campus housing of Ageno East last year, but there's something about being off-campus that makes it different. A little more homey. She makes grilled chicken with an avocado, corn and tomato salad on the side. 11:30: With sweet dreams of a Steelers win and Snowball by her side, the day finally comes to a close for Sunday.