How long have you been a part of Sporting Iowa?

Growing up, I always played for the local club in my town. But then when Sporting [Iowa] became an ECNL club, I switched to that club at a young age. I think I was around 13 years old. And then I played on their ECNL team for my next 6 years of club, and I had a great experience doing this. The club was very new to ECNL, so the first few years, it was an adjustment for everyone getting used to the league. But as I continued to play with my team and we just developed and continued to play against this great competition, I could really see the improvements of how our team just flourished, and we were able to compete at such a high level.

Being exposed to that high-level competition for years, really just helped develop me as a player, helped me to improve my speed of play and just being able to play against other players that were just as quick, just as strong and athletic, and just overall, having an even playing field against other great players and teams helped me to really focus on improving my soccer abilities and took my game to the next level.

What has been your favorite experience at the club?

My favorite experience through playing for Sporting [Iowa] has definitely just been our different travel trips. You get to go on lots of different trips to different places far away for ECNL showcases. I think my favorite one was maybe when we went to Arizona. I got to spend a lot of time with teammates, and you just have fun. You do stuff outside of the games, and then you get to play a lot of cool teams that you don't normally get to play around the Midwest. And so the exposure is great. There are lots of college coaches walking around at the event, so that's super cool to see. But yeah, definitely just the time off the field, spent with teammates.

How has Sporting Iowa impacted you as a player?

Playing Sporting [Iowa] has really impacted me as a player because it exposed me to a lot of adversity that I had not previously faced. For example, every day you're training at a high level against great players, and you're not always going to succeed in everything that you do. You're also being coached at a super high level. And I think that this helped me to become super coachable and just be able to receive what sometimes can be taken as some tough feedback, and just receive that feedback and help it to develop me as a player and continue to keep working hard to get better.

And then lastly, you're playing at such a high level against other opponents, you're exposed to lots of different moments for adversity. You're going to play against great teams. There are going to be times when things are hard. But just facing these adversities helped me to understand the process of improving and continuing to work hard through every stage of the game. And you just really reap the benefits in the end, seeing the player that you can become.

How has your club impacted your life off the field?

Sporting has impacted my life as a person in so many ways. One way that I think is kind of fun and silly is that we had a coach who would always just tell us about different life lessons. We were taught to try to do all of these different tasks to prepare ourselves for college. One way to learn how to fill our tires with air, which is something that was kind of silly, but it's not something that you realize you don't know how to do until you're off on your own.

But other than those challenges that Sporting, or specific coaches, inspired us, I have definitely been impacted as a player just through great relationships. I had great mentors and coaches who just taught me a lot about leadership, helped me to get through tough times and just understood how to be a good teammate. How to help others: pick other teammates up when they're struggling. And taught me a lot of life lessons that I think can apply to jobs or school, just so many other environments that go beyond just the soccer field.

Would you recommend Sporting Iowa to another player or family considering joining? Why?

I would 100% recommend Sporting to any player or family considering joining the club. This club has impacted my life, and I would not be where I am today without the experiences and all the growth and learning that I went through playing for Sporting. The staff, the coaching, the level that you're at, everything really just helps prepare you for the next level if you want to play beyond club soccer. And it even just pushes you to achieve any of your goals that you may be striving for. Beyond that, I also have great friendships and memories that will last forever. I'm still in contact with so many people, and I continue to come back to Sporting and train in the summers and in the winters, and it's just a great place that it's a family and I want to be a part of. So I hope that you want to be a part of it and join as well.

What advice would you give to someone just starting their journey with Sporting Iowa?

Some advice I would give to someone starting their journey with this club is to one... be brave. I came to this club, and I switched teams with no previous friends coming with me. I had no other friends on the team that I knew. I totally came in by myself, and it ended up being the best thing for me to develop as a player, and I made such great relationships with teammates and coaches. So be brave in taking this step if you're nervous about joining the club. And also to just be yourself, work hard, show up every single day, and you truly can see the rewards of what the club and the game can give to you.

What makes Sporting Iowa different from other clubs you have been at?

I think the difference from Sporting Iowa and other clubs is that they truly care about you as people and as athletes. And they care about all of their players. I continue to come back. I'm even in college now, and I continue to train. I have contact with previous coaches who will help do sessions with me on the side, and just say, keep in touch and care about how I'm doing here at college, and just in general, in life. And that piece is just so important to me, to have that relationship and just feel valued at where you're at.