Women’s sports offer crowd-pleasing experience

There’s this strange idea I have that as someone trying to
write about sports, I should at least watch a game or two over the
course of a week.

Crazy thought, I know.

And it’s never easy to decide what to see, as
there’s always a glut of varsity competition at a school like
UCLA.

Take Saturday, for instance, when men’s basketball,
women’s soccer, swimming and volleyball all seemingly vied
for my attention.

Basketball was out of the question, as, well, I didn’t
expect too much of a barn burner when the Bruins took on Chicago
State.

But more than making a snap judgment about the quality of the
competition, I think my decision that day came down to one thing:
sex ““ as in the ever-waging battle of the sexes.

Call me biased, sexist, whatever ““ as with life in
general, I pick the women over the men hands down, especially when
it comes to who makes for a more crowd-pleasing athletic
experience.

Guys approach sports with the mentality that the winner is
whoever is bigger, faster and stronger.

And, more often than not, cockier.

Women take on athletics with finesse and intelligence. Sure,
they see the benefits of being physically superior to the
competition, but they know that so much more of a game is
outsmarting the opposition.

So it makes sense that they play with more passion, like more is
at stake than just another win for the record.

And the women still seem to pile up victories. Those who vote to
determine teams’ national rankings must see this, especially
for UCLA: six of the nine nationally ranked Bruin sports are on the
distaff side of things.

I have to wonder, then, why football and men’s basketball
are king among UCLA athletics. Maybe because they’re the top
moneymakers. Or maybe because they used to be top contenders for
national acclaim.

But if the national attention of yore explained those
sports’ current dominance of the spotlight around here, why
shouldn’t those six ranked women’s teams be the
highlight of local news outlets’ athletics coverage? Why
shouldn’t Pauley Pavilion be packed for every women’s
volleyball game or Drake Stadium for every women’s soccer
game?

Don’t misunderstand me. I like football and men’s
basketball. I like the attention they bring to Westwood.

But women’s sports do a little more for me.

And, in fact, I think those who appreciate women’s sports
do so because the environment is so much different than at a
typical football or men’s basketball bout.

Consider the scene of the women’s volleyball game Saturday
night.

For one thing, the band was noticeably absent, leaving the
national anthem to a lone, unaccompanied voice. “The Mighty
Bruins” and “Sons of Westwood” were on tape.

Yet I think fans appreciate this austerity. Heck, they have the
chance to heckle the other team and actually be heard.

And in the same regard, spectators can be a little weird at
these kinds of games and still be accepted and even applauded.

At this game in particular, a large group of guys marched into
Pauley chanting something friendly to UCLA, wearing shirts rolled
up high and tied in the center, and donning Spandex shorts.
I’m not sure what the point of their stunt was, but I
couldn’t keep from thinking that if I cared a little less
about personal dignity, I would have loved to show my support for
the Bruins in a similarly outlandish way.

That’s the climate of women’s games in general. And
there’s something about women’s take on sports
that’s a lot more fun. A lot more engaging. A lot more
athletic.

A lot more. Period.

Looper can’t get enough of the women … and their
sports. E-mail him at [email protected].