Hamilton Commons: Weekend hours leave athletes hungry

KYLE SCHECK
PHOTOGRAPHER

AIDAN SHAPIRO
STAFF WRITER

3/30/2026

Being a student-athlete is something I have always enjoyed about being at a small school. I love that I can do other things like write for the paper and work in the admissions office.  

One thing that irks me quite a bit, though, is that I cannot always eat dinner at Hamilton Commons, commonly known as Saga. With Saga closing at 7 p.m. on Friday nights and my practices typically getting out at around 6:15 p.m., some nights I get there right as they are closing or after.  

By the time I get there, most of the food is already put away and I am left to eat whatever is still out. 

“It can be really frustrating when Saga isn’t open on Fridays, especially since a large portion of our student population are athletes who don’t get out of practice until later in the evening. Not having access to it at that time is very inconvenient at times,” said Sydni Wolverton (‘27), outfielder for the softball team.  

If Saga kept its normal weekly hours on Friday nights, most student-athletes would be able to go and get food after their practices. Part of the fault also lies on coaches and sports teams; I will be honest. Coaches know the hours of Saga, so making sure practice and meetings are over by a certain time on Fridays should be doable.  

Saga’s hours can be really challenging for student-athletes because they often conflict with practice times, games, and travel. A lot of us have tight schedules already, so when the available hours don’t line up, it can be stressful trying to fit everything in,” said Lily Thompson (‘28), outfielder on the softball team.  

There must be a reason Saga closes earlier on Fridays than it does the rest of the week, I imagine there are less students on campus than there are during other weekdays. At the same time, however, if Saga is open until 7:30 p.m. during the week, Fridays should be no different.  

Another aspect that frustrates me is that the hot food gets put away before 7 p.m. on Fridays on some occasions. If Saga is supposed to close at 7 p.m., why are they putting food away before that time?  

Look, I totally understand that the Saga staff works very hard all week to make sure that students are fed properly and all that, but it can be frustrating to get there and there isn’t enough food left for me and my teammates to enjoy.  

Like I said before, part of this issue can be resolved by athletic coaches ensuring that practice or film or whatever is going on Fridays is done by 6:15 p.m. at the latest so that athletes can get their proper Saga meals.  

While in most cases this is a student-athlete issue, I am sure there are other students that are not happy with Saga’s weekend hours. 

Opening for breakfast at 10:30 a.m. is also not ideal. Like I said before, I understand that Saga must consider that a lot of students leave for the weekends, but for those that have to stay, having to wait that long to get breakfast can throw students off. 

For example, if I have a home lacrosse game at noon or even 1:00 p.m. on a Saturday, there is a good chance that I must be in the locker room right before Saga opens. If it opened at 9:30 a.m. or even 10:00 a.m., I think a lot of students would be much happier. 

Overall, I totally get it that Saga designed these hours based on how many people swipe in at certain times, but I do fully believe that athletes should be taken into account more when they are making the hours.