Bailey Andrews is a third year at St. Thomas University and has been playing rugby for over six years. She loves playing rugby for the Tommies, despite her many injuries over the years.
Andrews is originally from Charlottetown, P.E.I. but spent much of her childhood in Fredericton.
“I half grew up here, I was here every weekend. My mom went to [the University of New Brunswick] and my dad actually came to STU. I spent every holiday here and stuff like that,” said Andrews.
Andrews said she originally came to STU because of the human rights program. She is working on a double major in human rights and criminology, along with her double minor in anthropology and mathematics. She hopes to go into the education program afterwards.
She said being a student athlete can get challenging at times, but the pressure of both can be a good thing.
“It does help, in a way, because you have to be organized. You go to school, you go to practice and then you have to do your homework,” said Andrews.
“There’s no time to put it off, whereas if I’m in the off season, its easier to put your homework off and you can see the difference.”
Andrews has played every position except for two and is passionate about rugby and has overcome several obstacles since arriving at STU, in the form of injuries and concussions.
“This year, my biggest problem was my knee. About forty-five seconds into a game, I got hit from the side and my knee just tripled in size, so I was out for about a month,” said Andrews.
“Trying to come back was hard, I was out of it. It was hard mentally and physically to get back. It wasn’t my best season.”
Andrews estimates she’s had about six concussions since joining the STU women’s team, with a couple of them being quite severe. She was unable to play throughout the summer due to last season’s concussions.
She currently is coping with a broken foot that requires surgery and a back injury from work but is hopeful that she’ll be in fighting shape for the 2018 season.
She said her stubbornness and determination is what pulls her through.
“I hate being told that if you’re hurt you can’t do this,” said Andrews.
Andrews also plays rugby against her older sister, who transferred to UNB last year and now plays for its women’s team. The two sisters have been playing rugby for a while, but in separate leagues due to their age difference.
Though the sisters have been competing against each other and have occasionally received injuries from one another, Andrews said the two always go and see each other after their games.
“We’re pretty close, I’d say. We coach together for a high school team, and I obviously look up to her. She’s a very good player.”
