Madeline Conta '24 Recruiting Profile

My name is Madeline Conta and I am a junior at Archbishop Mitty High School in San Jose, California. I was first introduced to the sport of field hockey one year before Covid and having played club soccer for 7 years prior (and with help from my coaches) I picked it up fairly easily.  The spacing and flow of the game were familiar to me, but I was most drawn to the speed of the ball and the challenge that a new sport represented.  My freshman year I played both soccer and field hockey for Mitty, but with guidance from my parents I made the decision to shift my focus to field hockey and track.  As a sophomore, I not only made varsity for field hockey but was also a starter throughout the season, playing the most minutes of anyone on the team.  I was honored to be the only sophomore in the league to be named to the 1^st team all-league.  I also made the varsity track team running the 400m and 4x400 relay before focusing on the 800m later in the season and becoming Mitty’s top 800m runner.  I am an avid all mountain skier and during the winter months, my team represents Kirkwood Mountain during Free Ride competitions.

I pride myself on two attributes in particular: coachability and endurance.  Throughout my athletic career, and with the guidance of my parents, I have consistently been lauded for my coachability, work ethic, and passion to improve my performance.  I believe this is evident in how quickly I have picked up the game of field hockey, moving from novice to all-league in just over 2 full seasons.  My combination of speed and endurance allow me to compete all the way through the fourth quarter no matter how few substitutions I have been given, and my training for middle distances during track season enables me to maintain my fitness throughout the year.

My parents instilled in me a passion for community service and the environment, and I am looking to continue both of these interests once in college.  I currently volunteer over 80 hours per year through the National Charity League and have achieved the Presidential Volunteer Service Award in each of the last two years.  I was selected for one of Mitty’s Ethics, Culture and Justice (ECJ) social justice classes this year which culminates in an 11-day immersion experience providing service to communities in need.  This summer I completed a college-level environmental science course on Climate Change and am interested in pursuing either environmental science/studies or psychology in college.

I hope to be able to find a college that is the best fit for me academically, while also allowing me to continue playing a sport that I truly love.