I Am I : My First Year Of Travel Soccer

Soccer has always been a sport that I’ve loved throughout my childhood. I’ve watched superstars like Sami Aljaber and Yousf Althunyan put on epic performances through the expression of soccer. However, I never truly understood what soccer could do for me until I signed up for my first soccer team. It was in high school, and I was only sixteen years old at the time. I was very excited to have my own team, and to have my statistics being recorded throughout the season. I definitely wanted to test my skills on the soccer field against true competitors that wanted to win just as badly as I did. There were local schools that we had to compete against, and then if we made it far enough, we would get to compete at the state and national levels. When I signed up for my high school soccer team, I truly didn’t know what to expect. I expected to have some fun with my new teammates and friends, but I didn’t realize that it would teach me a valuable life lesson about hard work and discipline. This paper will explain the ups and downs that I’ve had throughout my high school soccer years, and how it helped me become a better person today by instilling positive traits such as hard work, determination, and discipline.

As a young girl, I was introduced to soccer by my father. I think I was about eight at the time when I first played on a recreational team, and I remember that I had always wanted to play goalkeeper. In soccer, the goalkeeper is the last defensive player, but is also the first offensive player once the play turns. The idea of playing such an important position thrilled me, and it didn’t hurt that the goalkeeper gets the opportunity to use their hands as well as punt the ball across the field. From the age of nine until the age of eleven, I played competitive and recreational soccer as a goalkeeper, and stopped in the sixth grade. I picked the sport back up as a freshman in high school, after my younger sister had urged me to join the school

Getting cut from the soccer team was a wakeup call that taught me a hard lesson: Talent alone won’t guarantee success. The coaches didn’t pick me not because I failed to show my skill but because of my nonchalant attitude at tryouts. Instead of holding their critique personally, I took their comments as motivation to change my attitude. From that experience on, I learned that attitude play an important role in success.

Approximately four years ago, twelve of us accepted a position on team that none of us, not only knew anything about, but also did not expect much from. We were twelve individuals that were seeking a college soccer experience at the division I level and if you ask any of those girls back then, none of them could have predicted the reality of the four years that we would ultimately spend here. This team had experienced heartbreak in freshman year on many levels, battled through the pain of losing in the semi-finals of sophomore year, and again losing in the finals last year. To be a part of this program is unlike any experience I’ve had before. There is always a supportive and positive environment; there is always progress being made every

At that moment I realized that I had to add something to my game in order to stand out. I soon learned that practice and physicality could only make me better. Freshman year came around and i didn't have a coach that was willing to support me and help me develop into the player i know i am today. Its been a whirlwind of emotions with all the pain and failure I've experienced since my freshman year, when i watched the team go 4-11, To say the least i didn't get a single game but that only taught me to fight harder for what i wanted. Sophomore year came around, and with that a new coaching staff that gave me an opportunity to shine from day one. At the beginning of my sophomore season i thought i wasn't meant to be a goalkeeper, so i switched to attack, after a few games, i didn't like it and my coach could see that i was frustrated not being able to settle in. During a game against Flanagan High School, our goalie let in two goals in a matter of seconds, and our coach

Joining a new club soccer team coupled with almost daily workouts allowed me to improve my skills in the offseason. The feeling of going into tryouts being so prepared allowed a new level of confidence to emerge in myself. With only two starting spots open, working hard from the very start was necessary in order for me to prove myself to coach. After making the team again, I knew giving my best effort couldn’t end here. I showed up to practices with a positive attitude, always ready to work hard. When the preseason scrimmages, long practices, and exhausting fitness checks were over, the feeling of having earned a starting spot was incredibly satisfying. Now, not only am I working hard to keep up my starting spot, but I am hoping my attitude will rub off on everyone and make the team stronger. Afterall, soccer is a team sport; and the possibility of winning a state title in the near future adds to my ambition to perform well for my teammates every time I step on the field.

I developed a disdain for the coach because I would be exhausted at every practice. The day of the first game arrived. It was a very fearful game. I wanted my team to at least score a few goals, but surprisingly, our opponent was easy to defeat and our first game was a success. Our coach was impressed because she knew of our previous unsuccessful season.

The spring of 2016 had held many opportunities for myself. For instance, when I tried out for the boys U15 Montco Alliance team. That spring my resilience was displayed because I had to work extraordinarily hard to achieve my goal of making the team. I put many hours toward my goal and finally received that email whether or not I was going to be a member of the U15 Montco Alliance team. One major setback, was the fact that there were 40 kids trying out for the 16 spots on the team, that greatly lessened my chances of making the team because so many other soccer players trying out for the Montco Alliance team. However, Knowing that, it made me work even harder. I am a young, athletic, intelligent, and a curious

Last year, I had been one of three sophomores to make the varsity soccer team. I was proud to be part of the elite group and motivated by the opportunity to play with the upperclassman. The season kicked off with a promising start. Coach gave me encouraging feedback and significant playing time as he tried to determine my position on the field. Game after game, I kept earning more opportunities

Yet my apprehension prevailed as I continued to fear getting put in the game in case another player was injured. I was still afraid of making mistakes and getting blamed by screaming coaches and angry teammates. Sometimes these fears came true. During my sophomore season, my position led me to play in the varsity games on many occasions. On such occasions, I often made mistakes. Most of the time the mistakes were not significant; they rarely changed the outcome of a play. Yet I received a thorough verbal lashing at practice for the mistakes I had made. These occurrences only compounded my fears of playing. However, I did not always make mistakes. Sometimes I made great plays, for which I was congratulated. Now, as I dawn on my senior year of soccer, I feel like a changed person.

There once was a great hero named Jason he was better than anyone else at soccer. Jason every day after school would go to the park and practice soccer tell it was dark out. Day after day Jason would go to the park and play soccer with his friend Jake. They would practice after school and during summer until freshman Year of high school. Jason and Jake went to tryouts for soccer their freshman year and got placed on varsity they had thought that all their practice had payed off. Game after game, Jason was the MVP of the games always scoring the most, being a team player, and being able to play all positions when needed. Everyone in school thought that he had it all he was smart, strong, and he was a varsity soccer player.

At age 9, my mom registered me in a local soccer academy where young kids were trained and nurtured in the sport. I was really excited because I believed it was the start of an illustrious soccer career. Playing as a center forward, I enjoyed each and every minute on the pitch and also the atmosphere. My family would always come to watch me play and cheer for me. That buoyed me and gave me a lot of confidence as I kept thinking that one day, they would have to sit on the couch in front of the television watching me playing professional soccer. At age 12, I was privileged to meet one of the Nigerian national soccer team player Kanu Nwankwo. He was known worldwide and most of his teammates saw him as a role model. On the day he visited our academy, he talked to us on many issues mostly on being focused and working towards making our dreams become reality. He also talked about a heart foundation program he was running and how it is helping

September 14, 2007 became the best day of my life and the worst day of my life combined into one. During one of my high school soccer games, I had the realization that my passion for soccer could come to a screeching halt, not by choice, but by injury. Here is where that emotion filled day started. I worked so hard to earn my first starting game as a freshman goalkeeper, and on that cool autumn night, I finally got what I had been working hard for, that high school Varsity starting spot. Before every game, the announcer announced the starting lineup for each team in the stadium for all of the fans to hear. Hearing my name announced in my high school stadium for the first time felt like no feeling I have ever felt before. So much joy, anxiety,

Entering that room, nothing could have prepared me for what was to come. As I sat there my heart dropped when I heard the words, "you made the team", "you are not going to play much", and "if you tryout next year you will not make the team". I was in such a daze as I reemerged from the room. It was as if the wind had been knocked out of me and I was having trouble understanding what had just happened. I had never felt disappointment like I did in that moment in my entire life. Soccer had been the only sport I knew for 8 years. Change had always been a struggle for me since I was little so I was aware that trying a new sport was going to be difficult. Field hockey captains practices were held during the summer, so I decided to go to one and

I have been playing soccer as long as I can remember. Of course, I grew up kicking a ball around with my uncles not knowing what the I was doing. Eventually, growing up, I understood more and more; such as understanding that the ball needed to go in the goal. When reaching my middle school years, my parents registered me on a soccer team. As usual, It was close to the same running around my parents had experienced when I was younger. Of course, now I had better knowledge of the game and knew a bit more about how to play. When I reached my high school years, I noticed I wasn’t the best at the soccer. Now, I see myself improved in accuracy, "chemistry," and teamwork.