Sports
Growing up, I played a lot of sports—soccer, basketball, golf, track, volleyball, and flag football, to be exact. Of all of them, I excelled most at soccer, flag football, and track, and those are the sports I still feel the most passionate about today.
Soccer
I played soccer for 15 years of my life, starting when I was just 3 years old. I began with rec soccer for a few years before moving into traveling soccer. Traveling, or club soccer, is where I made 99% of the friends I have today, and I’m forever grateful for that.
After club came high school. I started my freshman year on JV, and by sophomore year, I worked my way up to varsity. I had played forward and midfield my whole life, but the new coach decided to move me to defense. Surprisingly, I ended up being pretty good at it, and I even got to play with my big sister Katie, who was a senior. That year, I also earned Defender of the Year.
Junior year came, and I was still on defense—but this time as a center back instead of outside back. I didn’t enjoy the position change, and I slowly started to lose my love for the sport. Every year, we went from high school soccer to indoor winter soccer to club in the spring, so it’s easy to see how these girls became my best friends. We were always together.
My last year was my senior year, and I was named captain. It was a tough season with a tough coach, but I was just happy to be on the field with my friends. At the end of the season, I ended up earning MVP.
Track
My track journey was a short one, but I accomplished a lot in a short amount of time. I started track my freshman year because my basketball coach, who was also the track coach, recommended it. I figured it would be a good way to stay in shape for soccer, which was always my main sport.
I wanted to be a sprinter and run short distances like the 100 or 200 meters, but my coach thought I’d be good at the 800. Unfortunately, he was right. My very first varsity meet was freshman year at an indoor meet at the University of Wisconsin, River Falls. I ran the 800 in 2 minutes and 42 seconds, and my legs and butt had never hurt more in my life. Later that season, I set my personal record of 2 minutes and 32 seconds. I also earned Rookie of the Year and All-Conference Honorable Mention.
Sophomore year came, and I really didn’t want to do track anymore, but I toughened it out and finished the season. That year, I competed in a new event called the 4x8, which was just me and three teammates passing a baton after running 800 meters and trying to beat the other teams. We ended up earning All-Conference in the 4x8 that season.
After sophomore year, I decided it was best for me to quit track and pick up golf… which I unfortunately ended up being pretty bad at.
Flag Football
Flag football was the sport I played for the least amount of time, but somehow it was the sport I was best at. In my senior year of high school, I found out the Minnesota Vikings were giving money to schools so girls could play flag football. I was so excited that I joined right away.
The season started in the spring of my senior year and lasted about two months. It was genuinely the most fun I ever had in sports. I played receiver and was ranked number one in the state for most of the season in both yards and touchdowns. We ended up winning sections and moving on to the state, where we unfortunately lost in the first round.
I was named First-Team All-State, All-Conference, and Offensive Player of the Year. Because of that, I got to attend a Vikings game and be honored on the field along with the others who made the first All-State team.
"The harder the battle, the sweeter the victory."
– Les Brown