SUMMER SCHOOL ZONE: Go big or go home

My original goal was not to become a 22-varsity letter athlete. 

The first goal I set for myself was in sixth grade, where all I wanted to do was make the varsity soccer team. I moved schools in fifth grade, and at the time, I was playing club soccer. The school held an interest event for the sports it offered, and my mom took me just to take a look. I saw the school offered every sport available to any student once they were in sixth grade. I became interested in playing school sports and wanted to see what other sports teams I could participate in. 

The driving factor — and what pulled me into playing other sports — was that my parents and other family members had all been a part of teams such as cross-country and track-and-field. Being the 11-year old self I was — and not really knowing what I wanted to pursue in life — I chose to try out and participate in the cross-country team, soccer team and track teams at my school. That decision, however, cost me my travel soccer team spot, because my travel coach would not let me participate in both club soccer and school sports. Unfortunately for him, I chose school sports. 

My ultimate goal at such a young age was to do my best, because that was how I was raised, and try to make the varsity soccer team. When I reached sixth grade, I was blessed to be able to make the varsity team for cross-country, soccer, and track-and-field. I finished my sixth-grade year with three varsity letters — one from each varsity sport I played that year. By the time I finished eighth grade, I had nine varsity letters. For all three years of middle school, I tried out for the three sports I chose in sixth grade and made the varsity team for each sport every year. By this point, I knew that soccer was my passion, and I wanted to pursue that at the collegiate level. So, I began using the other sports as an opportunity to improve in aspects of my physical health to help me play better on the field. 

By the end of my eighth-grade year, I realized I had an opportunity that most kids I know did not. I was earning three varsity letters a year, and I knew that had to be some sort of record — one I wanted to make sure I could accomplish. Also, but being able to hold some sort of record would be another factor in my life that would help push me to keep going even when times were tough and I felt like giving up. 

I was on track to finish high school with 21 varsity letters. The last person I was able to find with a multitude of letters graduated with 16 letters. This motivated me to keep playing school sports, despite what most college coaches were telling me, saying that without club soccer, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish my goal of playing collegiate soccer. 

In 10th grade, my weightlifting teacher came up to me and asked if I would be interested in joining the weightlifting team. I told her no, initially, because it was during the same season as soccer and that was my priority. Fortunately, she was persistent and continued to answer all my questions and work with me to create a schedule that would allow me to participate on both the soccer and weightlifting teams — while giving a majority of my time to the soccer team. I was sold, and when winter sports sign-ups came out, my name was on both the soccer and weightlifting teams’ tryout lists. 

When I officially made both teams, the goal of graduating with 23 letters instead of 21 letters crossed my mind. I was already setting a high standard, but I told myself what my mom always told me, “go big or go home.”

Unfortunately, that dream was crushed when I tore my ACL, MCL and both menisci in my left knee during a soccer game my senior year. I was still blessed and grateful to graduate high school with 22 varsity letters, setting a record for both my school, the state and the country. 

Over the years there were multiple moments where I wanted to quit a sport or I just felt like I wasn’t good enough. After I finished every sport and I was done with school sports, I missed it and I wish I could go back. It showed me that I have to work hard for everything in life, and I can’t take anything for granted. I won’t have the luxury of doing it forever. I am proud that I pushed through every hardship, because if I hadn’t, then I wouldn’t have been able to celebrate this accomplishment and everything that I have gone through to get to where I am today. 

I hope my story inspires girls at any age to chase their goals no matter what, and hopefully one day, someone will pass the record I set. After all, I believe records are made to be broken.