September 25, 2007
LAWRENCE, Kan. – K.U. athletes who are under 21 have only a few options for entertainment after hours because of the obligations that accompany membership on a sports team. Isadora Rangal and Caroline Americo, both from Sao Paulo, Brazil, along with their teammate Brittany Williams of New Orleans, Louisiana, are all members of the KU Volleyball team and spent Saturday night at Abe & Jakes to hear the band Son Venezuela play. This concert was one of the few events in town where underage students could soberly have fun but when the band stopped at two am the next question became “where do we go next?”
Isadora Rangal, a sophomore in journalism, referred to herself and her teammates as “Mass. Street junkies” because when they’re not at practice or studying they are usually downtown. She said that they are rarely tired at closing time and usually end up walking around on Massachusetts Street. “We usually go to the Hookah house, IHOP, or a house party.”
Occasionally, on days like Saturday, the girls are just too tired because of their intensive daily activities and wind up in bed. Brittany Williams, a sophomore studying chemistry, said that she sometimes feels weighed down by the responsibilities that go with being on the Volleyball team. “There’s this air of responsibility, you can’t do anything, but just because we play volleyball doesn’t mean we have to eat, sleep and breathe volleyball.”