Senior chemistry major Alexa Wandy is a key part of both the Geneseo women’s soccer and track & field teams. Wandy has earned SUNYAC titles in both sports and has proven her worth as a two sport varsity athlete. (Alicia Roth/Staff Photographer)
Senior chemistry major Alexa Wandy stands out from her fellow athletic peers because not only does she play on one varsity team, she plays on two.
Originally from LaGrangeville, New York, Wandy is a jumper and sprinter for the track and field team and a defender for the women’s soccer team. Wandy’s dedication and endurance has been part of her lifestyle ever since she was a kid.
First came soccer. Wandy has been playing for as long as she can remember, saying that she was a “toddler running around in cleats.”
Track and field came a bit later in her career; it was something she pursued when she was a senior in high school. Wandy was convinced by a good friend to join the team, telling her that she would love it.
Four years later, she is still going strong. Here at Geneseo, Wandy holds the track and field school record for the triple jump for indoor and outdoor and is tied for the outdoor long jump record.
In her collegiate athletic career, Wandy’s main focus has been on her teams. They provide the atmosphere for success on the field and the structure for healthy and happy friendships off of it. Both teams have completely different characteristics that make each unique and lovable in their own way.
“The soccer team is just a fun group of girls who are so much fun to be with and always make the strangest jokes. The track team has a wide variety of people, personalities and senses of humor that make it a great time,” Wandy said.
Like all teams, both provide Wandy with the support needed to get through trying times. Wandy has struggled with on and off injuries since joining the Knight community, but she gives credit to her teams for getting her though these times.
“We make sure to get each other to the trainers and get the support we need to get better,” Wandy said.
Along with this, the team has also helped Wandy with her struggles as a student here.
“Geneseo is already a challenging school and sometimes the work load can be a lot,” Wandy said. “We all get together and have dinner, hangout and do homework and study.”
The challenge of balancing a social life with school and two varsity sports seems near impossible, but both groups have pulled Wandy through the tough times and have given her lifelong friends in the process.
Wandy’s top memories from both track and soccer both involve winning SUNYAC championships and are focused not only on her individual experience, but also on what those experiences did for her teams. She described winning with the track team as a team effort, regardless of the individual events.
In soccer, winning 1-0 against SUNY Cortland sparked a moment where the team joined together emotionally and physically in celebration of all the hard work they had all put in to get where they were.
“The teams have shaped who I am; they encouraged me to open up as an individual and broke me out of my shell,” Wandy said.