- 2017 Highlights
Personal Statement
Soccer has always been an important part of my life. It has basically been the only sport I've ever played and I've played it year-round for the past eight years. Soccer has taught me a lot, but it has taught me the most about dedication. Back in 2009, when I first started playing club soccer at Zionsville, there was a defined group of 11 or 12 of us that was sort of our "original team." However, I am now currently the only player left from that original team that is still playing on our current team. Also, in my eight years I've made it to nearly every practice and I don't think I've ever missed a game. I've always wanted to be able to play collegiate soccer, and I think dedication is an important characteristic to have to achieve that. Since I plan on going to a college that is both academically and athletically challenging for me, balancing soccer, schoolwork, and other extracurricular activities will be important.
Something that has greatly impacted soccer for me has been my size. Growing up, I was definitely on the smaller side, and I still kind of am. At first, my size did impact my soccer especially while playing for ODP. Considering my birthday is December 29th, I was always the youngest in my age group and I was almost always the smallest kid on the field. However, being exposed to players who were bigger, faster, and stronger than I was at an early age only had long-term positive impacts. This exposure taught me to play bigger than I am and it taught me that you need to be mentally tough to beat out opponents who have the physical edge on you. I would say that exposure is a key reason why, after only four games of our season, I was able to secure a starting varsity position on my high school soccer team as a 5'5" freshman even though I was playing against almost exclusively upperclassmen. This toughness mentality has always benefitted me in my soccer career, and I think it would help me make a great fit with any collegiate soccer team.
