One More Season
(FREDERICTON, NB) “Everyone always says that it goes by so fast, but I don’t think anyone really understands it until you’re stepping onto the field as a fifth year, in your final season.”
Jesse Bellamy wonders where the time has gone.
She arrived at UNB in the fall of 2017 and quickly made her mark with the REDS women’s soccer team.
Now, in 2021, after a 2020 season lost to the pandemic, the midfielder is poised to play her fifth and final season with the REDS.
“With this being my final year, I just want to give it everything I have and enjoy every minute I have left being a part of this team,” she said.
Bellamy is one of three REDS playing their final seasons in 2021.
Fellow midfielder Paige Wilson and keeper Brynn Nash are also playing their final seasons with the REDS in 2021.
“I think it took me saying “I’m a fifth year” aloud to realize and accept that I’m starting my final year as a RED,” said Nash. “It’s unbelievable that four years have gone by as fast as they did. I’ve gained so many memories, friendships and life experiences. It’s hard to accept this is my final season, but I walk into this final season just as excited, motivated and ready to compete as my first.”
Nash, Bellamy and Wilson have been mainstays in the REDS line-up. Nash and Bellamy since 2017, Wilson since 2016.
Nash has seen action in all 12 games in each of the three season she’s played, starting all 12 in 2019-20.
Bellamy has appeared in 30 games over her three seasons of action, scoring three goals and an assist.
Wilson, the only one of the three playing her final season of U SPORTS eligibility, has appeared in 39 games over four seasons, starting in 19 of them.
“Having played four seasons in the AUS now, I know how much dedication, work and discipline it takes to be at our level,” said Wilson. “I’ve learned a lot from my time here, about soccer and life. What I’ll cherish most from my time here are the friends I’ve made, but my favourite soccer memory, to this point, would be upsetting Dal in the quarter-finals in my fourth year (2019). It had to be the best soccer I’ve been part of, and it was great seeing it all come together in the playoffs.”
Dealing with a fifth year of university is difficult enough. The emotion attached to playing a final season of university soccer promises to make it more so, but all three are prepared for that. In fact, all three have high hopes for the coming season.
“I think the possibilities are endless for our team,” said Bellamy. “Every team is coming into the season looking a lot different than they did back in 2019. It’s a fresh start and this season is anyone’s for the taking. We were fortunate to be able to train and compete as a team during the 2020-2021 school year. Hopefully that gives us an edge in 2021.”
“Since there was no season last year, no one knows what could have happened, or how teams have grown since 2019,” said Nash. “I hope we’re able to establish ourselves as a contender and a team to watch out for. Obviously, the AUS Championship is the ultimate goal, and as a team we really want to graduate a champion and create a legacy in the 2021 season.”
Like her senior teammates, Wilson is hopeful the REDS can contend in the AUS. But she says the goals go beyond winning.
“I’m thinking about leaving a lasting impression on the team,” she said. “We have a very young group, and leaving them with standards and values is very important to me, as well as passing down the stories and experiences of all those that came before us.”
“With such a young group, these seniors will be mentors and guides for our group throughout the season.”
Jon Crossland is thankful to have Bellamy, Nash and Wilson for one more season.
The head coach of the REDS women’s team, Crossland knows the value of their combined experience.
“They’ve set the standard of expectation on the field and been important in creating our team culture. They’re the connectors of generations, the link between past and present team traditions.”
Crossland says, collectively, the trio is an invaluable asset. He says each one also brings individual gifts to the group.
“Paige has been through three generations of players now as she came in as the Hayley Gates, Laura McNicholas, Sami-Jo Bell-era was ending in 2016, and now has a role as that mentor for the new group of players. Paige has earned it every step of the way and has been such a consistent performer for our group.”
“It’s hard to match Jesse’s compete level on the field,” said Crossland. “She can create, she can score, she makes life hard for the other team’s players. Seeing Jesse battle inspires the group and educates her teammates on the level of compete that is needed to have success at the AUS level.”
“Brynn has been driven since day one, and has set the example for our group on and off the field,” he said. “She’s a vocal leader, but backs it up by being such a great role model for what we expect from a student-athlete. She’s strong in her sport, focused on her academics, and is an engaged leader on our campus and in our community.”
Happy to be back on the turf and preparing to return to competition, Bellamy, Nash and Wilson all say the lost 2020 season played a role in their decision to return in 2021.
“When you’re out of competition for so long, and training constantly with no end in sight, it can be difficult to stay motivated and maintain the drive you’d have in a normal year,” said Bellamy, who says she always planned on playing five years. “Once the AUS announced the return of soccer for the 2021 season, I was excited to be able to get back on the field and give it one last go.”
“The Masters I started last year is a two-year program, so I was lucky that I was able to extend the time I could play with this team,” said Wilson.
While Wilson will exhaust her eligibility this season, Bellamy and Nash will leave UNB with one season of eligibility remaining.
Whether they play that season elsewhere is a decision for another day.
For now, they’re focused on winning and enjoying the little time they have left as REDS.
“I can’t speak highly enough of the teammates I’ve had during my five years here,” said Bellamy. “They made the environment so special and made me feel like I belonged. I’ve had the time of my life.”
“My teammates have become some of my best friends and biggest supporters and motivators,” said Nash. “I cherish those women and the memories we have from our time at UNB. They are the best and greatest achievements I’ve made as a RED.”
The REDS, with Bellamy, Nash and Wilson leading the way, open the 2021 Atlantic University Sport regular season on September 11th, at Dalhousie.
UNB’s home opener comes September 18th when the REDS host Cape Breton, on the turf at Willie O’Ree Place Complex. Game time is 1:00pm.
PHOTO: Joy Cummings-Dickinson/UNB Media Services