By Jim Fenton
BRIDGEWATER, Mass. -- The annual break in the action for the seven winter teams at Bridgewater State University is under way.
As students deal with first-semester final exams before packing up and heading home for the holidays, there are no athletics competitions for 13 days.
After the men's and women's track & field teams and the wrestling team competed in Bristol, R.I., and Boston, respectively, last Saturday, the next time a BSU team suits up will be Dec. 28.
That is when the Bears' women's basketball team resumes its season by playing Dickinson College of Pennsylvania in Puerto Rico as part of a two-game trip.
The next event on the BSU campus takes place on Jan. 4 when the women's basketball team hosts nationally ranked Smith College at the Tinsley Center.
While the fall and spring sports teams don't have to deal with any long interruptions, the winter teams know that every year, they'll be getting time off.
The time away from practice and competition can lead to rustiness heading into the second semester part of the schedule.
But BSU coaching staffs are used to having the time off in December after getting some games and meets under their belts.
Here's a look at where the teams stand as they take some time off in December with most of the teams returning in January:
WOMEN'S BASKETBALL: The Bears, off to a 7-2 start, played their last game on Dec. 10 and had a seven-game winning streak stopped by Brandeis University, 70-64.
BSU will be together again in the early morning hours of Dec. 26 when the team travels to a warm climate to play in the Puerto Rico Clasico.
The Bears face Dickinson on Dec. 28 and Washington University of St. Louis on Dec. 30.
"We're trying to look at it as an advantage, nurse people back who have injuries and use that to get them back healthy,'' said coach Bridgett Casey.
The Bears struggled in the second half against Brandeis in their last game, losing all the momentum that had been built in the winning streak.
"Where we were playing so well at 7-2, you want to keep it rolling," said Casey. "But given how we lost that last game it's good for us to step back and regroup and say, OK, this was great, now we hit this little bump in the road and unfortunately we have three weeks to think about it and how are we going to come back from this.
"It's more time to think and work on the things we need to so that what happened last Tuesday night doesn't happen again."
BSU players have gotten together in an open-gym setting during finals to have optional workouts. Once they leave campus, it'll be up to the players to find a place to do some shooting and running.
"As a coach, you just hope they go back to their high school and practice a day or two or get in the gym and get some sprint work in,'' said Casey. "That way, when we come back, it's not like they're all winded. They always know coming back from a break is difficult, so hopefully they will do whatever they can to minimize the hurt."
MEN'S BASKETBALL: BSU (4-5) hit the break on a three-game losing streak as it dealt with injuries in the first semester.
The Bears, whose last game was Dec. 10, will be back at the Tinsley Center for a Dec. 26 practice before playing again on Dec. 30 at Salve Regina University in Newport, R.I.
"It's a break from the everyday demand of being a student-athlete," said coach Matt McLaughlin. "I think that's huge. It's good for the coaches. We can check out the high school games and the recruits.
"But it's time away. Sometimes it can be a little too much. You hope they're all working out and staying in shape, but you can't replicate practice. You can only do the best you can. That takes a little bit of a hit, but everyone's in the same boat."
McLaughlin, whose team has three non-conference games before opening the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference schedule, is confident his team will return ready to go.
"For the most part, our guys are really good," said McLaughlin. "All the guys are invested. You've got to get back into it."
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S SWIMMING & DIVING: The Bears competed on Dec. 7, hosting the BSU Invitational, and will not have another meet until Jan. 15 at Eastern Connecticut State University, a 5 1/2-week break. That is the longest time away for any of the BSU teams in the winter.
"A rest for everybody is pretty good," said coach Michael Caruso. "By rest, I mean getting away from the university. Student-athletes and coaches can get worn down in the first half of a season.
"I would say that wear down is probably a little more mental than physical for everybody. Our athletes will still do workouts throughout that time. They'll either do drop-in workouts now during finals or work out on their own. They can follow our practices or do their own workouts or train with their own teams. All of that is acceptable."
Before returning to competition, the BSU teams will be traveling to Rincon, Puerto Rico for training that takes place Jan. 9-14.
The Bears have gone there once before under Caruso and have done mid-season training in Florida a number of times as well.
"It's tough training, double sessions," said Caruso. "We're in a 50-meter pool, Summer Olympics-sized pool. It's intense training. We're packing on the intensity and yardage and prepping for the second half, which is tough meets and championships.
"It's a business trip. There's a lot of team bonding. When your team builds an identity together, that's probably the most important reason why we travel."
Five other teams will be training there with BSU and an exhibition meet will take place.
WRESTLING: The Bears finished the opening part of their schedule on Saturday at the Scott Viera Open in Rhode Island and return on Jan. 11 for a tri-meet at Worcester Polytechnic Institute with Wesleyan University.
Coach Frank Cammisa said that the wrestlers have been given a program to follow until they return to practice on Jan. 6.
"They work out on their own," he said. "They have strength and conditioning. Coaches provide them with a workout. There's aspects they have to continue if they want to keep where they're at to be ready for the second semester.
"This team is a little more dedicated and they will come back ready to go and hit the ground running. Some teams in the past have not been as dedicated. There was rust when they came back. You can tell who continued to work out during the break and who didn't and who maintained their nutrition."
Cammisa said BSU has six challenging meets in the first six weeks of the season before going on break.
"The way that we do the schedule, we try to get the most out of first semester so having three or four weeks off can be beneficial if you're a little injured or banged up," he said. "But for guys who want to continue momentum, it's kind of a hindrance being off."
MEN'S AND WOMEN'S TRACK & FIELD: The Bears were at the Mini Meet at Boston University Saturday, their second competition of the season, and are back Jan. 8 for the Bryant Indoor Throws Competition and Jan. 11 for the Suffolk Invitational.
Coach Christine Kloiber will have her team back on Jan. 6 for the first practice of 2025.
"The returners understand the importance of doing your training while away," said Kloiber. "That's why over the summer, they do their training and it pays off. All the younger athletes are like, 'Oh, that's how we get better.'"
Kloiber said she expects a majority of the track & field athletes will be ready to go once the season gets going again in January.