Like Fire and Rain: Through the Eyes of Erica Casacci!

Name: Erica Casacci

Age and/or Calendar Years of College Attendance: 21; 2008-2012

College(s) Attended: Boston University

Sport(s): Softball

How did you "decide" to become a College Athlete?: I didn’t really decide… At first, I had no intention of continuing to play after the 8^th grade, but just play for my high school. I was pressured by my father to continue playing softball at a high caliber and during my sophomore year of high school, I was asked to come play for an 18U Gold Team, the highest level. We went to all sorts of big tournaments with the best college scouts in attendance. I began to see that maybe playing college softball could be a possibility for me. I worked very hard both on and off the field to catch the eyes of D1 schools. I had gotten some looks at prospective colleges and universities but none that really sparked my interest. After one of the tournaments, Boston University’s assistant coach contacted me saying that she was interested in me and will be watching me at an upcoming tournament. I had no idea who or what BU was, but I did my research and was really impressed with the university and their athletics department. So, I held BU off as my last official visit and made my decision to commit to BU the day after I came home from my visit. I honestly can say I do not know if I would have picked out that school if it weren’t for softball, but seeing myself grow and adjust to the Northeast and have such a wonderful experience, I feel as though BU was the perfect place for me.

Accomplishments in Your Sport: America East Champion 2009, 2010; NCAA Regional Participant 2009, 2010; America East Regular Season Champions 2010, 2011, America East All-Rookie Team 2009, All Tournament Team 2010

Accomplishments in the Classroom: Dean’s List 2009, 2010, 2011; America East Honor Roll 2010, 2011

Regrets, if Any: None

Favorite Memory (Memories) of College: Hitting my first collegiate homerun sophomore year.

Funny Stories: Ever since freshman year, I made a bet with my friend Lee that if I ever hit a homerun in my 4 years, then he would have to do a naked lap around West Campus. I never thought I would actually win the bet, but I succeeded in my goal my sophomore year. It was the America East Tournament, Semi-final game. The score was 0-0 in the bottom of the third inning. We had runners on first and third and I come up to the plate. Now, I am not exactly a power hitter. I’m a slapper and so I usually play the small ball to “set the table” aka get on base for the power hitters to hit me in. So, my coach calls a timeout and approaches me. I’m calm and cool and he asks me how I’m feeling hitting in this situation. He said, “All we need right here is a long fly ball so that we score the girl on third base, preferably hit it to the right side of the field.” I said ok and went back to the plate. First pitch was a ball. Second pitch was an inside change up and I crushed it to right field. I am thinking I hit a long ball to right and run as fast as I can to try to get a double out of the hit. As I am about to cross second base, I realize that the ball was not caught but still going and going… and it hits the top of the 200ft sign and bounces over to the other side of the fence. I cannot believe it! I am so excited I am running so fast that I almost overrun the girl in front of me and miss home plate (which both could have resulted in me getting out). My teammates are making fun of me for my excitement because I literally ran the fastest time around the bases with my arms in the arms instead of a nice slow homerun trot. My teammates were cheering as if we had just won the National Championship all screaming in anticipation waiting for me at home plate. Our pitcher picked me up immediately and carried me into the dugout. The best part was that I turned to my team and said, “NOBODY call Lee and tell him. I want to tell him.” After the game, I had so many excited texts from friends and Lee! He said “Well, I guess I need to start getting in shape.” It was the best day of my softball career because not only did I hit a homerun but I also went 3-4 in that game. I will always remember that game because if it weren’t for my 3 run homerun then we may not have won 4-3 against Maine and go to the championship.

Regarding the Pressures/Expectations of Being a College Athlete: These past four years have not been an easy journey. There have been a lot of ups and downs due to the pressure of balancing my social life, academics, and athletics. I receive a lot of pressure from my father to be the best softball player that I can be, but his negative feedback and the way he handles my mistakes or bad games really affected me. I still to this day believe that my coach does not think that I am a good enough player or that he sees me as a integral part of the team. Freshman year was a whirlwind. I had the opportunity to start as a freshman and got my chance but the glory didn’t last long because my best friend and roommate took my spot. I was crushed. My self-confidence from that point on was never the same and is still a constant battle as a senior. I cried after every game that I didn’t play and my frustration was only doubled when having to talk to my dad. Sophomore year was my shining moment. I was starting and doing well. I even accomplished goals that I did not think were ever possible both on the field and in the classroom. But by junior year, I was right back to where I started. Always scared that my position would be taken away, trying to appease my coach with my performance, maintaining a good GPA. It became too much for me to handle. I was falling apart fast and I felt that no one could relate to me and my situation, not even my closest teammates. So, I had to seek help from a different source: behavioral health. I started to see a therapist and talk out my frustrations, worries, and negativity. I began to see things in a more positive light and be grateful to be in the present situation. I learned how to cope with my stressors and keep my head up when I struggle with athletics or academics. I’m a work in progress and everyday I strive to be a stronger person and my experience from being a college athlete has made me who I am today.

In Summary, How Being A College Athlete/Coach/Parent/Fan has had an impact upon your life in the past, present, and future: I wouldn’t trade this experience of being a Division 1 athlete for anything. It is something that most people do not ever get the chance to experience, and I have been so blessed to earn a collegiate scholarship for athletics. It has instilled in me a pride that will last me a lifetime.

Chanel Bell is a Penguin! She's Awesome :)

Name: Chanel Bell

Age and/or Calendar Years of College Attendance: I went to college at 16 in 2008 and I am graduating this May 2012. I played every year but my junior year because I broke my ankle right before season.

College(s) Attended: I attended Howard University in Washington, DC.

Sport(s): I played as the Goal Keeper on the Varsity Women's Soccer team all four years and did Shot put and Discus on the Varsity Indoor and Outdoor Women's Track team my freshman year (I won't discuss this one as much).

How did you "decide" to become a College Athlete?: I have been in athletics since I can remember, so it seemed natural that I would continue it through college. At first I joined the sports teams out of pure love of the sports. Then at the end of my freshman year, I was offered a scholarship to continue playing soccer. After that, I only stayed on the team because of the scholarship. I continued playing because it was my job and no longer the passion and love for the sport.

Accomplishments in Your Sport: My sophomore year I was chosen as the At-Large player for our conference, the Great West, first team. My senior year I was chosen as one of the co-captains of my team.

Accomplishments in the Classroom: All four years of college, I balanced being an athlete as well as an honor student. I have been on dean's list my first 2 years & the last one. I have received the scholar athlete award for keeping a yearly GPA above a 3.0.

Regrets, if Any: Rather than say my regrets of becoming an athlete, I will say my trials with being one. I didn't have the best of a coaching staff. Our head coach was stubborn and didn't have a great regard for academics as much as he should have. As a team, we struggled to make him understand the importance of our study time vs OFF season practice time. My assistant coach was very two faced and while he was cool to your face, he instantly changed behind your back or in the presence of our head coach. There were numerous times where he led us on and then when our head coach came into the picture he turned on us. We also struggled with respect from our coaching staff. There were frequent times where they brushed off our opinions and numerous team conversations about our actions (a girls parent had to call our AD before) there was name calling and cussing that came from them. I guess I just want people to know that things aren't always perfect on your team. You have to power through them to get to the end of the season/your athletic career. (Kind of off the records but I'm sure I can figure a way to put it in the book if you want, the first season with our new coaching staff and the team that didn't always get along, was extremely stressful; so stressful in fact me and my best friend on the team started drinking because of it. It may be the one thing I regret about my whole athletic career, that it literally drove me to drink.)

Favorite Memory (Memories): One of my favorite memories which isn't really about my soccer team, but one of my good friends from the team had this boyfriend who we had all grown to know and like. On the night of her senior game last year, after our game, he proposed to her in front of all of her family, friends and teammates by placing an engagement ring in the pocket of her Letterman's Jacket. Soccer related memory would probably be the bus rides. Before every away game on the bus we used to watch a Disney movie before the game. It was something small that really made away trips fun and it was a bit of good luck.

Funny Stories: My school isn't known for its athletics. The soccer team hasn't had a full roster in years. My coach was hired the spring semester of my sophomore year, so he didn't have much time to serious recruiting for our fall season. Well the next year during our season, the day before games we always have a "walk-through" practice which consists of light drills and a walk-through game. That season we had maybe 14 people on the team. So when it came to our walk-through game, we had to have both of our coaches, our team trainer and team manager get on the field so that we could run through game play. If you could image a tall lanky 5'11" trainer who never played soccer and a very quirky and awkward team manager who hadn't played in years. It was a very interesting sight to say the least. It is one of the funniest memories our team has from that season.

Regarding the Pressures/Expectations of Being a College Athlete: It is completely doable in terms of being a student as well. You are pressured to do the best and be the best because our school's scholarships are on a yearly basis so they could be taken away at anytime. SOme don't handle it well, but many take that as fuel. My team was full of pressures which would take ages for me to talk about, and many succumbed to the pressures and let their grades fall and become crazy partiers (my drinking was never extreme). But I think it's all worth it.

How Being A College Athlete/Coach/Parent/Fan has had an impact upon your life in the past, present, and future: It has taught me a lot of things. I have learned how to manage and deal with conflicting personalities and attitudes. It has definitely taught me patience, perseverance, and determination. I have made some life long friends from the team and will make sure my kids join one as well. It was an important part of my socialization that truly left a lasting mark/impression on me forever.

My story sounds bad... it wasn't the highlight of my college career. To be honest, if I could go back, I probably wouldn't have joined the team at all. But that's because sports were never as big a passion for me as they were for others. My word to future recruits and parents, if sports aren't your life, don't do it because they need to be. You excel most when you are able to put your whole heart into something.

A Penguin from Ghana...you HAVE to read this Brilliance!

Hello Penguins!

This is a response from my good friend Nana, who lives in my hometown but is originally from Ghana, Africa.

This is his response to how College Athletics have changed his life forever:

I'm 20 years old and a Sophomore at an NAIA College in Montecito, Santa Barbara called Westmont College.

I play Football, which is also known here in American as Soccer.

How I decided to become a College is quite an interesting story.It is a story that has a long history and I wish there was an easier way to explain this. I have always dreamed about playing Football or Soccer at the professional level.

Im originally from Ghana, a country that most of you might be familiar with and some may not. It is a developing country, so like many less prosperous nations children we embrace sports and most of us, meaning the children define who we are by the sports we find and commit our whole lives to playing, hoping something productive might come out of it.

There are many people who play sports for fun, for the experience and for the wonderful environments that it places before us. But for me this sports, to be precise, Football is a way of life. I have spend all my life chasing this dream, running and battling against many odds to become a professional Footballer because this is what I had grown up seeing in my country. Many of the people I grew around committed their very being to this sport because it was an alternative to having a promising future. since even the well educated and most scholarly people i had grown up around found it incredible difficult to find a job in a world where there is a huge gap between the rich and the poor. Nothing what so ever of a middle class really. So for me and others like myself, playing Soccer was a way to secure ourselves a promising future. And we train everywhere and anytime, most times bare feet because we weren't able to afford the necessary gears we needed for the sport. And we train as hard as we can hopping somebody would see us and offer us a chance for a trail out on either local professional team or be blessed enough to make it overseas.

So personally, Soccer/Football was a of life and for 20years I had allowed it to define who I am. Though this perception has brought many glorious moments to my life, I guess I allowed it to unconsciously blind me of other talents that God blessed me with.

For 20 years, I had allowed this skewed perception to define who I am. But it has taken almost a year for me to finally start realizing that there is more to me that just Soccer/Football. I thought Soccer was the only reason why I was so accepted by people. I let this preconceived notion blur my true nature.

And now I understand that there is more to a person that just his or her possessions and achievements.

That we all have something special and unique, instilled in us and playing sports and doing other activities can help bring that special thing in anybody to light.

So personally, I wanted to play soccer for economic reasons, I wanted to erase the poverty that I have grown up witnessing in my family. Where most times it was very difficult to have a single meal, let alone a three square meal. Soccer was a war for me to get out of that system and be able to make it professionally and erase that poverty from my family.

So I grew up committing all my heart and very life to chasing after this dream of becoming a professional Soccer Player so I can eradicate the unpleasant financial circumstances in my family and in the lives of those I cared about.

The biggest accomplishment playing soccer has brought me is that I have been blessed to come to the United States to obtain an amazing education, while still playing. But I will say the greatest accomplishment for me at this time in my life is being able to come to the United States to study and ensure a promising future as a result.

I was fortunate to be recruited to a Soccer Academy and thus, become the first person in my age group to be given a full Academic Scholarship to study here in the United States at a private High School called Dunn School, located in the Santa Ynez Valley in California.

Being the last born to parents who past away when I was 4 or 5years old, I have great appreciation for this wonderful opportunity I've been blessed with to be here in America to have a wonderful education because they is no way, shape or form my family could have even pay for me schooling, let alone buy me a flight to this amazing country with this blessing of an education.

well I don't really usually like to talk about personal glory because to some extent i don't want people to think it's hubristic.

But I guess I can humble share that at the Dunn High School I was an Honor Roll student for all 4 years

and for soccer had some personal awards, MVP's and other but I think that is all I will share about this particular topic. And in College, I made the All-Conference Team.

I guess my biggest regrets, I don't really know if I should call this regrets or not but I hated not being able to play because of really disturbing injuries and also losing games that we should have won.

Favorite moments were the moments I spent on the field with my team mates, and Bus rides to away games and most importantly, the glorious moment that will forever live in my memory whenever we won a championship.

For funny moment: like I always asked my team mates to repeat themselves a lot or explain many jokes that didn't seem to ring any bell in my head. But they would laugh and we will all find ourselves having a really good laugh at me, including myself, because I couldn't understand the significant or the context. It's a cultural thing I guess. And it seemed they all enjoyed watching me get very confused, as I contemplate with ideas but will finally say something which they would think is funny and we will all be crying with soo much laughter.

These are some of the moments that I'm very proud to have been apart of.

To all you wonderful members and great audience of this amazing "Project Penguin" this tiny part of my life is not meant for you to feel sad or sorry or have pity for me but that you rejoice because of the blessings playing this Soccer/Football or this sport that I love so much has to presented to me and people like yourself. I really am proud of this amazing opportunity that I have been given which not may people in Country obtain to better their lives.

Penguins, a Template for Your Story!

Hello Penguins!

Here is a template I have made for you who elect to participate in Project Penguin. I have made a group on Facebook, a post on Letsrun, and emailed numerous college athletic programs this template. I am excited to see whom I will get to talk to! I will make sure to share everything here with their consent.

So here we go:

Thank you to all who have read and considered replying to my query:

I have created a template for those who would like to be involved. Please choose to reveal only what you feel comfortable revealing. Any information will be helpful!

Name: (can be personally messaged, or remain anonymous, just so I can give you credit for your information if you want it)

Age and/or Calendar Years of College Attendance:

College(s) Attended: (again, optional)

Sport(s):

How did you "decide" to become a College Athlete?:

Accomplishments in Your Sport:

Accomplishments in the Classroom:

Regrets, if Any:

Favorite Memory (Memories) of College:

Funny Stories:

Regarding the Pressures/Expectations of Being a College Athlete:

In Summary, How Being A College Athlete/Coach/Parent/Fan has had an impact upon your life in the past, present, and future:

Do NOT feel pressure to answer all the questions. Any information you provide will help someone! Thank you again, and I look forward to learning from this experience!

-Mia

Project Penguin: It's Your Time!

Hello Friends!

Project Penguin is finally in the works!

I welcome you. And welcome you to share your story, your experience, with the world.

As a D1 Track and Field Athlete, I am very passionate about sharing my experience with potential athletes, as well as just people who do not "understand" what being a College Athlete entails, whether it be NCAA D1 or NAIA, or anywhere in between.

I hope that you will share your experience with us here at PP.

I will be posting a template and an example of a PP story next time! Thank you!

-Mia