Graduating high school is a big deal for student-athletes.
It’s one of your final milestones before officially transitioning to college.
Many see it as a way to close the chapter that is your high school career and prepare for what’s next.
But unfortunately, I didn’t get that opportunity.
I graduated in 2021 during the height of the COVID-19 pandemic.
There was no prom.
No graduation ceremony.
Instead, I finished my entire senior year online without any exams.
And that carried over into my first year and a half of college, as well.
Although I decided to stay home for college, I knew adjusting to college would be difficult.
But having to learn how to take exams again and get into the routine of taking in-person classes made it even more challenging.
The more I got used to it, the more I began enjoying the college life and everything that comes with it.
Falling behind
During my third year, I started experiencing some academic struggles.
When I initially enrolled in college, I didn’t know what I wanted to do, so I decided to major in kinesiology.
I figured, since I’m an athlete, this would be a good fit for me.
But after about a year and a half of taking these courses, I started to realize that my heart wasn't really into it.
I tried to tough it out anyway and convince myself that I’d find something I’d enjoy if I just kept pushing. But I started to lose my motivation to go to class and soon, my grades began to slip.
As a result, I wasn't able to compete in the second semester of my volleyball season, which is the most important time of the year because of the playoffs.
This was very frustrating for me.
Not being able to play your sport because of injury is one thing - but not being able to play because of your grades is a different kind of hurt.
What I learned from this, though, is that sometimes you have to go backward to get a little more ahead. It was the first time I realized that it’s okay to take a step back, re-evaluate and then decide what to do moving forward.
So, I decided to switch programs.
I enrolled in the fitness and health promotion program, and I loved it so much more.
Everything was more hands-on, and I was eager to learn.
In turn, this affected me positively on the court, as well.
After missing out on the second semester of my third year, I’m now in my fourth year having my greatest season yet.
I’m also doing well academically — I’m even on the honors list this year.
All of this has been a major wake-up call for me.
It’s a turnaround moment that made me realize that you don’t always have to just keep pushing.
Sometimes you have to take a step back to take two steps forward.
Off-the-field experiences
As much as I love volleyball and everything that comes with it, it doesn’t define me as a person.
Some of my most memorable moments in college also happen off the court.
Recently, my team and I took a trip to Florida over winter break.
It was essentially like a training camp with scrimmages, where we played a good four to five days of volleyball, but we also had plenty of time to just hang out off the court.
On New Year’s Eve, my whole team was just hanging out together, having a good time and laughing.
Nobody was focused on volleyball, and it wasn’t even a topic of conversation.
We were swimming, playing games and really just getting to know each other.
It was a team bonding like no other.
We don’t usually see that side of our teammates when we’re on the court, so it was good to learn more about each other.
I think it made us closer, which will be crucial ahead of the most important part of our season that's coming up.
Goals
I have plenty of goals for the remainder of the year, and that starts with academics.
I want to finish this semester on the honors list again, so that I can hopefully win the honors award for my sport as well.
In terms of volleyball, I want to win the provincial championship and go for a national championship.
That’s something we’ve been aiming to do for three years now.
We have such a strong team, so I really think it’s our year.
But honestly, I just want to give everything 100% effort this year.
I want to finish the season knowing that I showed up everyday, gave it may all, and left it all out on the court.
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📷 Hannah Manners and Humber College
