There is no captain role in the women’s basketball team at the University of Dallas. Instead, there is a leadership committee. The leadership committee is important for the women’s team as a whole. They make sure there is success on the court and they do their best to lead the team to a smooth play. Although the captain role is also important, the leadership committee replaces the traditional role and aids the team in its own way.
Tessa Hastings, a freshman business major and #21, shared how important being a part of the leadership team is. She explained a couple of her roles.
Hastings shared, “We kind of have to make sure practices are going well make sure everyone’s focused and ready to go for practice, making sure that there isn’t any drama on the team and everyone’s getting along together, as well as making sure the energy is good in practice, and we always have to work out a lot of the travel stuff too. So when we’re traveling, we’ll figure out where we eat, which is my favorite job.”
Hastings explained that the difference between the captain role and the leadership committee is just how much more flexible the leadership committee is, as it can be changed.
Hastings added, “It allows other people to step up and take leadership roles.”
Hastings also explained how the leadership committee is chosen.
“But like coach said, it’s always up to change,” Hastings said. “There’s always people that can be added or people can be taken off. It’s really whoever is fitting the role at the moment.”
Jordan Gillespie, a freshman biology major and #22, shared how the leadership committee is important to her because it allows for her to be involved in decisions for the team, as well as give her a voice. Furthermore, as a member of the leadership committee, Gillespie said her duties include giving a voice to the underclassmen.
Gillespie said that the difference between the leadership role and a captain role is that all classes, from senior to freshman, are able to have an opportunity for a leadership position.
“Whoever we feel is stepping up and being a leader can be added,” Gillespie said, “It makes it more the players’ team than just the coaches or one captain.”
Caroline Croft, a freshman biology major and #11, is a part of the leadership committee as well and expressed that, to her, it is a chance to be a part of decision making. Being a part of the committee is especially an opportunity for her, as a freshman, because it allows her voice to be heard.
She shared the equality aspect of the leadership committee. The traditional captain role is usually having just a coach or an upperclassman making all the decisions. The leadership committee allows for all classes to have a say.
Croft explained that some of her roles as part of the leadership committee is making sure the team’s standards are always met and holding each other accountable. Though those are roles that a traditional captain can do as well, she expressed how it is also something that the leadership committee has been able to do.
Croft, to put it perfectly, said, “It allows for everyone to feel as if the team is being run more by the players instead of just the coaches or one person. It gives people the opportunity to have their voice heard regardless of their class.”
The leadership committee is a vital part of the women’s basketball team. It is a group of people making decisions for the team rather than just having the team captain making decisions on their own. It is the voice of the team and having the role change gives an opportunity for a range of decisions. Currently, women’s basketball is the only team implementing this system.
