It’s a sense of pride and “Joie de vivre”, of confidence and pure desire to “Laissez les bon Temps Rouler.” Having grown up in Morgan City, I knew what it felt like to live in a small town, where everyone knows each other by name. When I moved to Lafayette, I enjoyed knowing that sense of camaraderie and community still remained, even in a city almost 20 times the size.
Having attended the U Lafayette for both my undergraduate and masters degrees in Architecture, I learned the spirit and energy of the campus pretty quickly. Now that I am assisting in the marketing department’s newest branding efforts by capturing the spirit of UL Lafayette through photographs, I am assured of the unique strength and spirit that exists on the campus.
A few weeks back, I attended the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns home game where they won their sixth consecutive match with a 3-0 (25-20, 25-11, 25-20) sweep over Southeastern Louisiana. I was SO impressed by their leadership and unity as a team.
I grew up playing sports and this is one thing that I have never been able to find again….that intensity and desire to just dominate, extreme focus, and a strong sense of family with your teammates.
If you’ve ever walked into the Long Gym on campus, you may have been as confused as I was for a second. There is a huge print of UL fans cheering covering an entire wall, and when you walk in you’re far away enough to think it’s real! 🙂 (Well….at least until you realize they’re not moving.) 🙂
The player serving in the center of this image is Brooke Niland, and really the primary reason I attended the game. 🙂 She’s one of the first girls I really connected with at UL Lafayette and my old roommate! This has been a goal for her since she started college, so I’m so proud to see her starting for the team.
This is my absolutel favorite image from the game.
I had SO much fun….I kept wanting to through my hands up in the air, too….but then I remembered I had a camera. lol..
I love the all around intensity. And it was obvious the the sense of leadership definitely started from the top down.
Do you SEE what I mean when I say they are full of spirit? 🙂 🙂
Lady Cajuns, good luck for the remainder of your season. You’re doing an incredible job of representing our university and dominating on the court. 😉
To view the ENTIRE gallery of images from this game, please feel free to visit: http://catherineguidry.zenfolio.com/ul-laf-vball
Catherine
