天美传媒

鈥淭en turnovers to two assists? That won鈥檛 get you anywhere.鈥�

It鈥檚 the voice I heard in the background. Directed right. at. me.

That鈥檚 what everyone saw. Not the effort. Not the pressure. I was seen, but just not as me.

I think back to Seattle. The game. The last tournament of the fall season.

I used to love this sport. I used to feel calm with the ball in my hands. Now I feel like I鈥檓 being tested every second. Now, every time I step on the court, it feels like I鈥檓 walking on glass. Now, I just hear a voice saying I鈥檓 falling behind.

From the moment warmups started that day, everything felt off. I couldn鈥檛 quiet my thoughts all game and left feeling like I let everyone down, especially myself.

That week was brutal. I was quiet at school, quiet at home. I didn鈥檛 feel like myself and I didn鈥檛 know how to explain it to anyone. Every time I picked up a basketball, I felt a lump in my throat.

At the last practice of the season, I finally talked about what happened: that the weekend didn鈥檛 feel like me. It didn鈥檛 fix everything, but it helped. It reminded me that maybe I was being harder on myself than anyone else.

People think the hardest part of being an athlete is the physical stuff: the conditioning, the training, the weight lifting. But where would you be if it wasn鈥檛 for your mind? No one talks about the quiet stuff, the mental stuff: the pressure, the fear of failure, the feeling of needing to constantly excel in your sport, academics, and in relationships.

I started to wonder if I was mentally weak. I started to wonder if everyone else felt like this. If the opponents on the other team felt the same pressure, the same isolation. And if they did, then we probably had more in common than we thought.

Maybe in all of those battles against each other, in light and dark, we were all struggling quietly to just hold it all together.

鈥淓very time I picked up a basketball, I felt a lump in my throat.鈥�

Being a student-athlete can feel isolating. We balance school, sports and expectations, while feeling like no one sees everything we鈥檙e carrying. That鈥檚 why I wanted to be part of the Student Athlete鈥檚 Council: not just to be seen, but to help others feel seen for who they are:

Like Max, who always keeps the energy high.

Cristiano and Caroline, who are gritty and tough and never shy away from the toughest matchups and challenges.

Ava, who can quiet and focus her mind while she鈥檚 on the blocks before the gun goes off.

Isaac, who constantly celebrates his teammates and pushes everyone to do better.

I鈥檝e learned how important it is to support others when they feel like giving up and to give credit to those who keep showing up, especially when it鈥檚 hard.

It鈥檚 not about being perfect. It鈥檚 about persistence. It鈥檚 about knowing your teammates are struggling too, even if they don鈥檛 say it out loud. A teammate of mine leaned over during the game and said, 鈥淪top thinking. Just play.鈥� She reminded me that leadership also means listening and lifting others up.

鈥淚 started to wonder if everyone else felt like this. If the opponents on the other team felt the same pressure, the same isolation. And if they did, then we probably had more in common than we thought.鈥�

I鈥檝e said that exact same phrase to my teammates before. I鈥檝e tried to be that voice for others. But in the moment, I needed someone to be that voice for me. And that teammate stepped in when I was drowning in a voice that wasn鈥檛 my own.

Sports have taught me resilience and leadership and those lessons don鈥檛 stop when the season is over. So it鈥檚 time to go beyond my own team to make sure all athletes feel supported and valued. It’s leadership rooted in empathy, not ego. It’s also about belonging, growth, and giving back to the people and programs that have shaped us.

I hope StAC encourages younger athletes to understand that being involved in sports is not just about titles or stats. It鈥檚 about community, encouragement and consistency. It鈥檚 about shaving and bleaching your head after a big win to hype up your team like Cristian, showing up after three practices, volunteering and still being positive like Caitlin and Declan, and coaching junior squads while still competing on your own team like Luca and Tia. Being a part of StAC means stepping beyond my own team to help build an environment where all athletes feel seen.

鈥淚t’s leadership rooted in empathy, not ego. It’s also about belonging, growth, and giving back to the people and programs that have shaped us.鈥�

I鈥檝e learned that the most impactful leaders aren’t always the loudest or the ones with the best stats. They’re the ones who stay committed, support others, and lead with compassion. Sometimes, leadership looks like being the voice for a teammate who’s struggling. And sometimes, it鈥檚 about using your own to be honest about your struggles, so that others feel less alone.