A missed foul or bad call can severely alter the outcome of a game and can rob athletes of their hours of practice and training.

Even in a fair game, it’s impossible not to see the occasional flop or complaint. Athletes on the field or court are guaranteed to argue with a referee during the questionable moments of a game, according to Chico State men’s soccer goalkeeper Luke Dennison.

As a goalkeeper, Dennison is no stranger to seeing questionable calls against him and his teammates. The ability to look for his teammates downfield and orchestrate the strategies the team runs gives him insight on fair calls and flops

“We can create a great scoring chance that hits the post, while the opponent can come out with a counter attack and score seconds after we should have scored. It really shows how quick a game can change,” Dennison said.

Although the team has faced several unfavorable calls this season, the ability to continue playing and avoid protesting the game is what makes the team stronger according to Dennison.

“It is hard sometimes, but to overcome all odds but you must be positive and focused for the full game regardless of how the game is going,” he said.

Chico State volleyball’s first-year middle hitter Alex Boyle said she thinks the games she has played in have been fairly called, and the determining factor in the games outcome is the hard work of each team.

“I’ve never felt that a game has ever been rigged, it has always been very fair. I believe that whoever won, did so because of their hard work,” Boyle said.

Although the games at Chico State have been called fair according to Boyle, the 2016 Olympics were tarnished after it was discovered that several events had been rigged by the referees.

Junior forward Pooja Patel said that she didn’t think the team faced many bad calls during the year but instead attributed the poor performance of the team to bad luck.

“We’ve been horribly unlucky this season, goals against us have been made in one or two chances, whereas we are out shooting teams and get so many opportunities but lack the luck to score,” Patel said.

While on the field, athletes can struggle to understand fair and bad calls and can feel that the referees are working against them, according to Patel.

“Sometimes on the road, it can feel that referees call everything against us,” Patel said. “But there isn’t much you can do about it.”

Gabriel Moreno can be reached at [email protected] or @Gabesports3 on Twitter.