{"id":367,"date":"2018-04-17T15:11:28","date_gmt":"2018-04-17T15:11:28","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/2018\/04\/17\/2018417professional-womens-sports-teams-in-connecticut-prove-the-future-is-bright\/"},"modified":"2020-09-05T19:44:57","modified_gmt":"2020-09-05T19:44:57","slug":"2018417professional-womens-sports-teams-in-connecticut-prove-the-future-is-bright","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/2018\/04\/17\/2018417professional-womens-sports-teams-in-connecticut-prove-the-future-is-bright\/","title":{"rendered":"Professional women&#8217;s sports teams in Connecticut prove the future is bright"},"content":{"rendered":"<div\n        class=\"\n          image-block-outer-wrapper\n          layout-caption-below\n          design-layout-inline\n          \n          \n          \n        \"\n        data-test=\"image-block-inline-outer-wrapper\"\n    ><\/p>\n<figure\n            class=\"\n              sqs-block-image-figure\n              intrinsic\n            \"\n            style=\"max-width:800.0px;\"\n        ><\/p>\n<div\n              \n                style=\"padding-bottom:66.625%;\"\n              \n              class=\"\n                image-block-wrapper\n                \n          \n        \n                has-aspect-ratio\n              \"\n              data-animation-role=\"image\"\n              \n  data-animation-override\n\n          ><br \/>\n            <noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/CTW_Goal_Celly-copy.jpg\" alt=\"The Connecticut Whale celebrating a goal (credit: Michael Hertzel)\" \/><\/noscript><img class=\"thumb-image\" data-src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/CTW_Goal_Celly-copy.jpg\" data-image=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/CTW_Goal_Celly-copy.jpg\" data-image-dimensions=\"800x533\" data-image-focal-point=\"0.5,0.5\" alt=\"The Connecticut Whale celebrating a goal (credit: Michael Hertzel)\" data-load=\"false\" data-image-id=\"5ad6119b8a922d2f5f4f0e06\" data-type=\"image\" \/>\n          <\/div><figcaption class=\"image-caption-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-caption\">\n<p>The Connecticut Whale celebrating a goal (credit: Michael Hertzel)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p><strong>By Sam Prevot<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>Cydney Roesler first stepped on the ice when she was 5 years old.<\/p>\n<p>Her father was a former college hockey player for Colgate University and taught her how to skate along with her mother. This is normal for a kid growing up in Canada, where ice sports are a way of life. At 8 years old, she made the switch from a Canadian sport called ringette to hockey. She immediately fell in love with the game. Even at a young age, Roesler was competitive and this fast, physical game was a perfect match. However, there was one catch: Roesler had to play with boys.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere weren\u2019t any good, competitive girls\u2019 leagues at that time so I felt like boys hockey was my only option,\u201d Roesler said. \u201cPeople would always ask me, \u2018Did the boys try to hit you all the time?\u2019 and to be honest some of them did.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For Roesler and so many other girls, the opportunity to watch their role models only came once every four years.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cFor me it was tough growing up because I wasn\u2019t really exposed to female hockey players \u2026 it was really just every four years,\u201d she said. \u201cYou watched the Olympics and that was kind of it.\u201d<\/p>\n<div\n        class=\"\n          image-block-outer-wrapper\n          layout-caption-below\n          design-layout-inline\n          \n          \n          \n        \"\n        data-test=\"image-block-inline-outer-wrapper\"\n    ><\/p>\n<figure\n            class=\"\n              sqs-block-image-figure\n              intrinsic\n            \"\n            style=\"max-width:2000.0px;\"\n        ><\/p>\n<div\n              \n                style=\"padding-bottom:66.69999694824219%;\"\n              \n              class=\"\n                image-block-wrapper\n                \n          \n        \n                has-aspect-ratio\n              \"\n              data-animation-role=\"image\"\n              \n  data-animation-override\n\n          ><br \/>\n            <noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/30074069_10155585288788562_1200794036_o.jpg\" alt=\"Roesler on the ice for the Connecticut Whale of the NWHL (credit: Rob Rasmussen)\" \/><\/noscript><img class=\"thumb-image\" data-src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/30074069_10155585288788562_1200794036_o.jpg\" data-image=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/30074069_10155585288788562_1200794036_o.jpg\" data-image-dimensions=\"2000x1334\" data-image-focal-point=\"0.5,0.5\" alt=\"Roesler on the ice for the Connecticut Whale of the NWHL (credit: Rob Rasmussen)\" data-load=\"false\" data-image-id=\"5ad60fa8f950b7d15ed8dfbb\" data-type=\"image\" \/>\n          <\/div><figcaption class=\"image-caption-wrapper\">\n<div class=\"image-caption\">\n<p>Roesler on the ice for the Connecticut Whale of the NWHL (credit: Rob Rasmussen)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/p><\/div>\n<p>Roesler started playing girls hockey in high school and then played for the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/quinnipiacbobcats.com\/index.aspx?path=whockey\">Quinnipiac University<\/a> women\u2019s ice hockey team.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Since the passing of Title IX, opportunities for women in sports have increased dramatically. However, there is still a long way to go when it comes to professional women\u2019s sports. In professional women&#8217;s sports leagues are much smaller, teams struggle to put fans in seats and media coverage is lacking.<\/p>\n<p>Women\u2019s hockey has progressed since Roesler\u2019s childhood. The Canadian Women\u2019s Hockey League was founded in 2007 and the National Women\u2019s Hockey League was founded in 2015, during Roesler\u2019s junior year at Quinnipiac. She now plays for the NWHL\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nwhl.zone\/page\/show\/2826461-connecticut-whale\">Connecticut Whale<\/a>.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div\n        class=\"\n          image-block-outer-wrapper\n          layout-caption-below\n          design-layout-inline\n          \n          \n          \n        \"\n        data-test=\"image-block-inline-outer-wrapper\"\n    ><\/p>\n<figure\n            class=\"\n              sqs-block-image-figure\n              intrinsic\n            \"\n            style=\"max-width:200.0px;\"\n        ><\/p>\n<div\n              \n                style=\"padding-bottom:250.0%;\"\n              \n              class=\"\n                image-block-wrapper\n                \n          \n        \n                has-aspect-ratio\n              \"\n              data-animation-role=\"image\"\n              \n  data-animation-override\n\n          ><br \/>\n            <noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/24_image-asset.png\" alt=\"\" \/><\/noscript><img class=\"thumb-image\" data-src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/24_image-asset.png\" data-image=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/24_image-asset.png\" data-image-dimensions=\"200x500\" data-image-focal-point=\"0.5,0.5\" alt=\"\" data-load=\"false\" data-image-id=\"5ad610298a922d2f5f4eadbf\" data-type=\"image\" \/>\n          <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<p>The NWHL is just three seasons old. The league\u2019s only broadcasting deal is with Twitter, to stream a \u201cGame of the Week\u201d, and three out of the four teams are still league-owned.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Attendance was high in the inaugural season, with an average of 1,000 people attending each game. Now, that average is closer to 750 people. <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.cbc.ca\/sports\/hockey\/nwhl-hockey-slash-salaries-1.3857931\">Salaries<\/a> are also an issue for the league,&nbsp;some players have been downgraded from a set salary to now receiving payments for each game they play. Most players have other full time jobs in addition to playing NWHL games on the weekends.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The Women\u2019s National Basketball Association is a more established league, but it faces similar questions about attendance and salaries.<\/p>\n<p>The WNBA celebrated its 20th anniversary in 2017. The league has a television deal with ESPN and a few of its teams have partnerships with their NBA counterparts. Average attendance continued to decline, but resurged and reached its highest levels since 2011 last season.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>Sylvia Fowles of the Minnesota Lynx won the WNBA regular season and finals MVP in 2017, and was paid a salary of $109,000. The NBA minimum salary is more than $562,000.<\/p>\n<p>Amber Cox,&nbsp;vice president of the WNBA\u2019s <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/sun.wnba.com\/\">Connecticut Sun<\/a>,&nbsp;sees the league as a growing business that needs more commitment from fans.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s a patience involved when it comes to building a fan base. In this day and age you can survive and be a growing sport,\u201d Cox said.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cI think sometimes the miss is with fans, they\u2019re sort of casual about it. When I\u2019m talking to potential season ticket holders, you think you\u2019re supporting us by coming to three games and watching us on TV and reading about us in the paper, but the way that we are going to continue to have financial success and grow this thing &#8230; is by full season tickets &#8230; Take that commitment up. If you say that to people, typically the light will go on.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There is a disconnect in our society when it comes to men\u2019s and women\u2019s sports. The widely held belief is that a men\u2019s professional sport will be of higher quality and entertainment value than women\u2019s.<\/p>\n<p>Quinnipiac sociology professor Devon Gross who teaches &#8220;Sociology of Sport&#8221;&nbsp;says that looking at women\u2019s and men\u2019s sports differently is a learned behavior based on gender constructs and the way we socialize.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<div\n        class=\"\n          image-block-outer-wrapper\n          layout-caption-below\n          design-layout-inline\n          \n          \n          \n        \"\n        data-test=\"image-block-inline-outer-wrapper\"\n    ><\/p>\n<figure\n            class=\"\n              sqs-block-image-figure\n              intrinsic\n            \"\n            style=\"max-width:200.0px;\"\n        ><\/p>\n<div\n              \n                style=\"padding-bottom:250.0%;\"\n              \n              class=\"\n                image-block-wrapper\n                \n          \n        \n                has-aspect-ratio\n              \"\n              data-animation-role=\"image\"\n              \n  data-animation-override\n\n          ><br \/>\n            <noscript><img decoding=\"async\" src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/NBA.png\" alt=\"NBA.png\" \/><\/noscript><img class=\"thumb-image\" data-src=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/NBA.png\" data-image=\"http:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/09\/NBA.png\" data-image-dimensions=\"200x500\" data-image-focal-point=\"0.5,0.5\" alt=\"NBA.png\" data-load=\"false\" data-image-id=\"5ad6106caa4a99ffa5f13305\" data-type=\"image\" \/>\n          <\/div>\n<\/figure><\/div>\n<p>\u201cWe\u2019ve always associated masculinity and sports together,\u201d she said. \u201cWe think of sports as aggressive and violent and competitive and those are all things we associate with men more than women. We\u2019ve been socialized and told constantly that sports and men go together. So when women are playing sports we don\u2019t really know how to react to that.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There is a cultural belief that women are not as good at sports as men, and to watch women\u2019s sports is to \u201csettle.\u201d There is also the comparison of women to men and the idea that female athletes are less feminine because they play sports.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cAnyone who is associated with that we automatically think of as having masculine traits. That\u2019s where there\u2019s the stereotype that women athletes are lesbians or that they\u2019re more masculine,\u201d Gross said. \u201cThere seems to be a pretty strict binary in sports and you\u2019re either doing girls sports or boys sports and if you cross the line in any way we\u2019re pretty uncomfortable about it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>There is also the issue of sexualization of female athletes. Scholars say that the way male and female athletes are represented in the media is designed to \u201cuphold sport as a male preserve\u201d and there is still embedded sexism.<\/p>\n<p>Cydney Roesler believes games like the gold medal finals between the United States and Canada\u2019s women\u2019s hockey teams in the Winter Olympics prove that the sport can be exciting and draw audiences.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere shouldn\u2019t be that disconnect between the two (men\u2019s and women\u2019s hockey),\u201d she said. \u201cEven games in our league, it gets pretty fired up. It gets physical and everything like that. It\u2019s kind of like \u2018Hey, here are the aspects the men\u2019s game has that we\u2019re bringing to ours too,\u2019 why aren\u2019t people more drawn to it? A lot of people watch hockey because they think it\u2019s so tough with the fighting and the hits. We\u2019re not going to fight &#8230; but we\u2019re still physical, we\u2019re fast, we\u2019re skilled.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The University of Minnesota is home to the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.cehd.umn.edu\/tuckercenter\/default.html\">Tucker Center for Research<\/a> on Girls and Women in Sport. In an article titled <em><a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/journals.sagepub.com\/doi\/pdf\/10.1177\/1536504212436495\">Playing but Losing: Women\u2019s Sports after Title IX<\/a><\/em>, Tucker Center researchers discuss the inequalities between men\u2019s and women\u2019s sports that still exist today after laws like Title IX were passed.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>One particular issue mentioned is media coverage of women\u2019s sports. Although broadcast coverage of women\u2019s sports has increased and improved in quality, this change has not translated to newspapers, magazines or televised news and highlight shows.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The article cites a 2010 study by the University of Southern California that found that ESPN aired 100 segments and over three hours for the men\u2019s NCAA basketball tournament, and 11 segments and just six and a half minutes for the women\u2019s tournament. That coverage of the women\u2019s tournament was mostly a scrolling ticker at the bottom of the screen.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>The <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"http:\/\/www.courant.com\/sports\/\">Hartford Courant<\/a> covers the Connecticut Sun\u2019s home games, and some away games depending on how the team\u2019s season is going. Jeff Smith, deputy sports editor at the Courant, says that the paper\u2019s coverage is all about which teams are successful.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLike any other industry that\u2019s trying to find its way through financial challenges, we have to make choices,\u201d Smith said. \u201cSo we can\u2019t cover everything \u2026 when the team (Connecticut Sun) was not so good, we had to make choices and spread our resources. We would always have Sun coverage in the paper but not always with a reporter. But then last year, when the team did better \u2026 clearly that shifts the way we cover them.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>When Sports Editor Sean Barker started at the <a target=\"_blank\" href=\"https:\/\/www.nhregister.com\/sports\/\">New Haven Register<\/a> in 2000, there were 28 sports writers on staff. Now among three of the papers owned by Hearst in the area, there are six.<\/p>\n<p>Barker believes in fair coverage for men\u2019s and women\u2019s sports. But he admits that traditional beliefs from older journalists and a small staff can affect coverage of women\u2019s sports. The Register\u2019s Connecticut Whale coverage consists of one feature per season.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cWomen\u2019s sports have come a long way in media coverage, but there is still a fight for media space. I get challenged by this every day,\u201d Barker said. \u201cThere\u2019s some arguments that there\u2019s more media coverage on a television level that leads to people wanting to know more about men\u2019s sports. Then there\u2019s the basic argument that honestly people don\u2019t give women\u2019s sports the respect that they deserve.\u201d&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>When it comes to these coverage choices, Barker points out that the media could sometimes create more readership for the sport instead of the sport dictating the coverage.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cDoes attendance rise because there\u2019s more media coverage, or do you get more media coverage because your attendance is higher? It\u2019s an interesting dynamic. So if we covered the National Women\u2019s Hockey League on a consistent basis, how would that affect attendance? It would probably go up.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>For the Connecticut Sun, Cox thinks the team should take matters into their own hands and help bring attention to the sport and the players.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere is always more opportunity (for media coverage),\u201d Cox said. \u201cOne of the things I tell my team all the time is that we have to continue to be responsible for telling our own story. If LeBron tweets something about something political or the type of cereal he likes, everybody retweets it and the media picks it up and they talk about it. We don\u2019t necessarily have that critical mass on a national level.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>At the end of the day, Roesler and Cox are both optimistic about the future of women\u2019s hockey and basketball. Rising attendance, increased coverage and social media presence are all creating a loyal fanbase for the NWHL and WNBA to build a foundation on and young girls have more role models to look up to.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou\u2019re just now getting to the point where WNBA players grew up watching the WNBA,\u201d Cox said. \u201cThat is creating a cycle of \u2018I know I can do this for a living, I can earn a living playing in the WNBA\u2019 and as a result are training for it.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Roesler recognizes loyal fans at games and at the team&#8217;s postgame signings. She sees that as a sign that the future is bright for the sport.&nbsp;<\/p>\n<p>\u201cThere\u2019s definitely that fan loyalty,\u201d she said. \u201cAnd you start to see the same little girls coming to the games &#8230; so you see new faces but then again you see those returners who just love to be there. For little girls now they can come watch us and dream and hope they\u2019ll be where we are.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Since the passing of Title IX, opportunities for women in sports have increased dramatically. However, there is still a long way to go when it comes to professional women\u2019s sports.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":27,"featured_media":368,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[66,5],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-367","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-capstone-projects","category-hamden"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/27"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=367"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":2776,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/367\/revisions\/2776"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=367"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=367"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/hqnn.org\/hqpress\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=367"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}