There are many athletes in Pitman High School who are going to play college level sports in their next chapter of their lives. There are also many athletes playing their sport for the last time this year. Let’s get to know some of them and their journey!
Maryn Hall, a senior who plays on the varsity volleyball team.
Me: “Hi Maryn, thank you for letting me interview you today!”
Hall: “Of course!”
Me: “Are you going to play in college?”
Hall:, “Yes I am going to play in college. I am going to go play volleyball at Portland State University.”
Me: “Are you excited to play in college?”
Hall “I am really excited to play in college.”
Me: “How long did you know you wanted to play in college?”
Hall: “I have not always wanted to play in college. It has always been something I thought about, but I didn’t believe my skills were where they needed to be to be able to play at the college level. Then I knew that I wanted to play college volleyball my sophomore year.”
Me: “Why do you like playing volleyball?”
Hall: “Volleyball has done so much for me in my life. It has taught me a lot of things other than my sport. Volleyball has taught me about perseverance, hardwork, dedication, and consistency. It has taught me how to be a good teammate and how to work together with a team, not just individually. These things have translated to things in my life outside of volleyball. I think it is a beautiful thing that volleyball can teach you so much. Volleyball is also where I have met my best friends.”
Me: “I agree with you 100 hundred percent, volleyball helps you become a better person and you find the people you connect with the most. How long have you been playing volleyball for?”
Hall: “My first ever volleyball camp I was three years old, but I started playing on my first team when I was in fifth grade.”
Me: “Do you think you need to play a travel sport to be able to play in college?”
Hall: “I think it depends on what sport you play and what your situation is because for volleyball specifically you will not get recruited out of high school unless you play for a top high school in the state or country. When you play club, you’re doing more outside of school ,for example, getting more practice time and working out more. I believe that if you play club you can get a higher level of exposure, play, and speed of the game.”
Me: “I believe the same thing, when you play cub you get a different view of the game and you get a different level of play. Also colleges look at you through club and most volleyball athletes get recruited out of club.”
Me: “Have you ever been through a burnout period for volleyball or have ever stopped wanting to play?”
Hall: “Yes, I had a burnout year when I was 15 years old. You have to stick with it though because everything is going to get hard and you have to persevere through it.”
Me: “That is hard to come back from a burnout, but very impressive to do.”
Hall: “Yes it was hard.”
Me: “What were some of the things that you had to do to be able to go play college level volleyball?”
Hall: “This last year I made the commute to Sacramento three times a week for practice to go play for Omni Volleyball Club. The level of play though was much higher and the coaching was very tough. It brought me to a whole new level of play and I think that really helped me get that exposure for colleges. It was one of the most challenging things I have ever done. It definitely took a toll on me. I was not getting enough sleep. While it was one of the hardest things I have ever done, it was one of the most rewarding all at the same time and I miss it so much.
Me: “Wow, that is insane and very impressive for a person to do with such a big schedule, also going to school!”
Hall: “Thank you!”
Me: “Was it hard juggling school and volleyball at the same time?”
Hall: “Yes, it was definitely harder with the commute to Sacramento though, it has been easier before. I was able to do it, just a lot of homework in the car and no sleep at night.”
Me: “That is really amazing! That is all the questions! Thank you so much for your time!”
Avery Carlson, a senior who runs on the varsity Cross Country team
Me: “Hi I am Kylie.”
Carlson: “Hi I am Avery.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Carlson: “I do cross country and track.”
Me: “Do you want to play in college?”
Carlson: “I do want to play in college, and hopefully I do get the chance. I have been talking to some schools, but nothing has been finalized.”
Me: “What schools have you been talking to?”
Carlson: “Right now I am currently talking to UC San Diego, UC Irvine, and Southern Utah University.”
Me: “That is so cool! Would you be excited to go run for a college if you got the chance?”
Carlson: “Yes, I would be! I think for me it is good to have a team aspect with a sport. I feel like it would help me smooth down the transition to college because you have a group of girls you are a part of.”
Me: “That sounds very exciting and fun! What were some of the hardest things you had to deal with to try and get the opportunity to play in college?”
Carlson: “Some of the hardest things I had to deal with were trying to manage academics and sports, you will definitely have to put a lot of extra time in your sport if you want to play in college. For example I had to wake up in the morning today to run and later today I will run again. On top of that you are going to do strength workouts and you have to not only pay attention to your running, but also your nutrition and your sleep schedule. Just make sure, if you want to go beyond you have to take those extra steps to get there.”
Me: “That is really incredible! How long have you been running cross country for?”
Carlson: “I started cross country my freshman year of high school. I did track my eighth grade year, I only ran the eight hundred and the mile. ”
Me: “What made you want to play in college?”
Carlson: “I love the challenges and the obstacles. The challenges and the obstacles make it more fun because you are always wanting to get better, learn, and you never get bored running. There are always ups and downs, this is a fun challenge for me to keep pursuing. I also love my team and they make it worth it for me. I just want to be able to have a group of girls that I can connect with and have close friendships with. I want to be able to be around an amazing group of girls who are all so dedicated and have the same interest as me. I think it makes it interesting if you are going into college too. I love the sport and can not imagine not being able to do cross country and I just want to keep going. ”
Me: “That is amazing! Why do you love cross country?”
Carlson: “ Something similar to what I said about what made me want to play in college, I get to be with people who have the same passion as me and want to do the same things as me. I just love the sport.”
Me: “How long did you know you wanted to play in college?”
Carlson: “I think it was recently, for a while I didn’t think I was fast enough to be able to run in college. I care about my academics, so a lot of the schools that I was looking at were D1 Schools for cross country, so I didn’t think I was at that level. Then towards the end of my Junior year of track I realized that there might be a possibility for me to run in college. That is when I really wanted to do it, and I just have to do it and keep going.”
Me: “Do you think it is hard to balance school and cross country?”
Carlson: “I think it can get stressful, especially for me because I choose a lot of AP classes this year. This makes it stressful because if you are running before school, after school, and try to have a good recovery it can cause you to have a lot. Honestly, I hope all this time management will help me in the future.”
Me: “Did you ever have a burnout time?”
Carlson: “Yes, I definitely did. I feel if you are running continuously and you only get two week breaks a year, it can become a lot. I believe that if you do have a burnout time just remember your goal and why you run or why you play your sport.”
Me: “Yeah, that sounds like a lot, very impressive though. Any tips for people who want to play a sport in college?”
Carlson: “Try to stay motivated, if you have a goal it can help you stay on track to try and meet it. Also don’t be afraid to reach out to people, when you want to play in college do not be afraid to email the coaches. I emailed a lot of coaches and told them about my interest. Try to get meetings with them too.”
Me: “That is great, I will definitely be listening to that advice. Thank you Avery!”
Ashli Mendoza, a senior who plays on the varsity flag football team.
Me “Hi, I am Kylie.”
Mendoza: “Hi, I am Ashli.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Mendoza: “I play flag football.”
Me: “Do you want to play flag football in college or are you going too?”
Mendoza: “I would, but honestly I don’t think I would have the time to play flag football in college because I want to be a nurse.”
Me: “Do you think balancing the school work for going into nursing would be hard to do while playing flag football in college?”
Mendoza: “Yeah, I feel like it would be hard to do. I don’t think I would want to do that in college.”
Me: “Why do you not want to play in college?”
Mendoza: “The career that I want to do would not benefit me playing flag football in college.”
Me: “I understand that going to college to be a nurse seems hard and then playing in college seems very difficult.
Mendoza: “Yeah.”
Me: “Do you love flag football?”
Mendoza: “Yeah, honestly I like the team dynamic of the sport. I like how the coaches are hard on us, but they are not super hard on us, when they are super hard on us it makes it unenjoyable to play. The coaches just want us to do our best. Even if we make a mistake, they support us.”
Me: “How long have you been playing flag football?”
Mendoza: “I started playing my Junior year of high school because that is when they started to do flag football. I have been playing for around two years now.”
Me: “If you did flag football in college, do you think you would enjoy it?”
Mendoza: “I feel that I would enjoy playing. I like how the dynamic in the sport is, I love how competitive it is. I like that it is not a contact sport, I don’t really like contact! I like how you still have to have hand coordination because sometimes the flags are super low and they will move in the wind. If you don’t grab it, it messes with the game. There is no one behind you to help you because for us we are spaced out in sections. It is only you and one person behind you to help, so if you both miss it the game is messed up. It is a team dynamic, if the team is not doing well, we are all not doing well. It is not an individual sport.”
Me: “Yeah, it is a team sport, not an individual sport. What do you think you will miss the most about not playing flag football?”
Mendoza: “I think I will miss the bus rides, going to the games. Also warm ups, everyone will get excited. When you are with different types of people during practice, the friends you get to know. I will miss them. When you go to college you don’t really know anybody, you start making friends when you get there. In high school you know these people for years. I will miss the team dynamic too.”
Me: “What college do you want to go to?”
Mendoza: “I want to go to a college in San Francisco. First though, I will go to MJC for two years because I could save money. Then after that nursing in San Francisco.”
Me: “Have you ever thought about doing flag football for junior college?”
Mendoza: “I have thought about it, but I don’t think I will have time to do it because in nursing school you have a lot of assignments. You also have clinicals, which takes up a lot of your time and you need service hours for the hospital.”
Me: “Those are all my questions, so thank you Ashli!”
Braden Silveira, a senior who plays on the varsity water polo team.
Me: “Hi, I am Kylie.”
Silveira: “Hi, I am Braden.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Silveira: “I play water polo and swim.”
Me: “Are you going to play in college?”
Silveira: “I am debating it right now, I am talking to a few coaches.”
Me: “What colleges are you talking to?”
Silveira: “UC Merced, MJC, and Santa Clara.”
Me: “Nice! Why do you like water polo?”
Silveira: “Me, personally I like water polo because it is a very challenging sport. It helps me overcome a big challenge every time I play.”
Me: “Why do you want to play in college?”
Silveira: “I want to go play in college because it is a challenging fee and it will keep me involved throughout my campus, wherever I choose to go.”
Me: “What did you have to do to be able to get to the level where you can play in college?”
Silveira: “What I do personally is I play with a lot of teams, club teams. I also played for the California State team and then I have been traveling a lot for water polo.”
Me: “That is a lot of work and very impressive, so how long have you been playing water polo?”
Silveira: “I have been playing since fifth grade, so about 9 years now.”
Me: “How old were you when you started playing?”
Silveira: “I think I was around eight years old.”
Me: “That is a long time! What are you most excited about to go play in college?”
Silveira: “I am most excited to play in college just to experience the team because I have a few friends who are playing in college, they’re really loving the team aspect. It is a really good environment.”
Me: “How long did you know you wanted to play in college?”
Silveira: “Honestly, it has been very recent. This last year I have been very interested in the college aspect. I didn’t know it was an option for me to get that opportunity. This last year was really the first time.”
Me: “You play club water polo, right?”
Silveira: “Yeah.”
Me: “Do you think you have to play club water polo to be able to play in college?”
Silveira: “You don’t have to, but I would really recommend it. I have a friend who doesn’t play club and he is playing at a D2 school right now. But playing club definitely improves your game.”
Me: “Why do you think playing club improves your game?”
Silveira: “It is just a lot of reps with people from all over the area. I played with people from my team that live an hour and half away, we are everywhere. I get to see everyone’s different types of play.”
Me: “Do you think it is hard to manage school and water polo at the same time?”
Silveira: “It definitely is for me and with my AP classes I am taking. I am definitely working a lot, it is hard for me to get enough sleep at night sometimes and fit it all in my day. If you stay on top of things though, you can do it.”
Me: “Have you ever had a burnout phase with water polo?”
Silveira: “I have. I remember my freshman and sophomore year I was debating if I was going to stop playing because I didn’t know if I could do it anymore. It was a lot, but in the end I liked the sport and I just kept pushing through.
Me: “Any advice for people who want to go play water polo in college?”
Silveira: “I would recommend you just do it. Talk to your coaches, and coaches all around the area, so you can see what you need to do. It is a really great opportunity.”
Me: “That is great, thank you!”
Kilynn Vasquez, a senior who plays on the varsity girls golf team.
Me: “Hi, I am Kylie”
Vasquez: “Hi, I am Kilynn.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Vasquez: “I play golf.”
Me: “Are you thinking about playing golf in college?”
Vasquez: “I am thinking about it.”
Me: “What college are you wanting to go to?”
Vasquez: “Maybe MJC for a little bit, then I am not sure after that.”
Me: “That sounds like a good idea, you just want to go play?”
Vasquez: “Yeah.”
Me: “Why do you love golf?”
Vasquez: “I just really love the environment, especially the girls that I played with, my teammates. They are like sisters to me and I just enjoy that so much. It is sometimes calm, but it really depends on your mindset though. I feel like it is a fun environment.”
Me: “Yeah, it is calm because it makes you enjoy it and it is not stressful. You just get to go and golf.”
Vasquez: “Yeah.”
Me: “How long have you been playing golf?”
Vasquez: “I have been playing golf since I was in seventh grade, I wasn’t the best. When I played freshman year, I wasn’t the best, but when I continued playing I started to have fun and I got a lot better.”
Me: “Why do you want to play in college?”
Vasquez: “I have been playing all my four years here and as I continue to play I continue to enjoy it even more. Over the years I have been thinking about playing in college because that is something that I really want to do.”
Me: “What are you most excited for to go play in college?”
Vasquez: “I am excited for the new experiences, meeting new people, and playing new courses.”
Me: “That sounds like fun! How long did you know you wanted to play in college?”
Vasquez: “I have been thinking about it over the past four years, but I have been thinking about it more this year since I have to start getting prepared for college and applying for colleges.”
Me: “Have you ever had a burnout period with golf?”
Vasquez: “Not really, there are times where I get a little frustrated obviously. Once that is past, just keep playing and you just have to go through with it.”
Me: “What is one of the hardest things you had to do to be able to play college level golf?”
Vasquez: “A lot of practice, especially for golf you have to practice continuously or you are going to lose your momentum, you lose how you play.”
Me: “What is the hardest thing about golf?”
Vasquez: “The hardest thing about golf is keeping the right mindset. If you are disappointed in yourself, telling yourself, “I am not good, I can’t do this,” you are gonna play that way. If you keep a good mindset, you continue to play better. If you are thinking of it, you are going to do it.”
Me: “Yeah, I agree with that very much. It happens with all sports and athletes. Do you think it is hard to handle school and golf at the same time?”
Vasquez: “At times, yeah. For us matches and tournaments, we only play till around 6pm, I think that is the latest. You will have time to go home and do your homework, but not as much if I got out of school right away.”
Me: “Any advice to the kids who want to play golf in college?”
Vasquez: “I would say just keep practicing and keep a positive mindset whenever you are playing.”
Me: “I agree with you so much on that! Thank you!”
Winmin Tan, a senior who plays on the varsity girls tennis team.
Me: “Hi, I am Kylie! What sport do you play?”
Tan: “I play tennis”
Me: “Are you going to play in college?”
Tan: “To be honest, I really want to, but I am not sure I’m at that level.”
Me: “Why do you think you are not at that level?”
Tan: “Everyone else is so talented and I know that I will be really busy with school work.”
Me: “What college do you think you are going to?”
Tan: “I want to be a dentist, so I am planning to go to Stan State to get my bachelor’s. Then I am probably going to transfer to the UOP accelerated dental program in San Francisco.”
Me: “That is super cool! What do you love about tennis?”
Tan: “What I love about tennis is the team work and the competitive aspect about it. I feel like a lot of people view tennis as not a very hard sport, but it is. It requires a lot of athleticism and I feel like it is very underrated. Definitely the teamwork aspect and supporting each other.”
Me: “Why would you want to play in college?”
Tan: “I really love high school tennis, it is the same thing. It is like a little community and we all work together. We all support each other and we all go to places with each other. I feel that it is a really beautiful thing.”
Me: “That is super sweet and I love it! How long have you been thinking about playing in college?”
Tan: “To be honest, I wasn’t really confident in myself my first two years, but lately I have been loving tennis and very passionate about it. Even if I go to college and don’t play for a team, I would definitely want to play for a club.”
Me: “Yeah, I would do the same thing if I didn’t play in college. Do you think it’s hard to manage school and tennis at the same time?”
Tan: “It depends on the schedule. I feel that I have a really good schedule right now and usually I am able to make up the work. Tennis is only a certain season and not the entire school year. I don’t think it is too hard.”
Me: “How long have you been playing tennis for?”
Tan: “I believe I started when I was in fourth grade, then I stopped playing, then I started again, then I think I stopped. Now I have been playing for four years.”
Me: “Have you ever had a burnout phase with tennis?”
Tan: “I don’t believe so. I have always loved tennis and I have never been burned out because of it. There have definitely been some matches that I thought, “I just want this to be over,” but I just kept pushing through.”
Me: “Yeah, I understand that. Any tips for the people who want to go play tennis in college?”
Tan: “Definitely stick with it and stay consistent, know what you want to do, and just work hard. I think you should definitely have a goal, work towards that goal, and focus on the passion for it rather than just getting on.”
Me: “Trying to get better with it and have fun?”
Tan: “Yeah.”
Me: “That is great! Thank you very much!”
Alex Perez , a senior who plays on the varsity girls water polo team.
Me: “Hi, I am Kylie.”
Perez: “Hi, I am Alex.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Perez: “I play water polo.”
Me: “Are you going to play water polo in college?”
Perez: “I have thought about it a lot, I am not sure. If I do, I know my brother is playing right now in college, so I would follow in his footsteps.”
Me: “What college do you want to go to?”
Perez: “I would either want to play at JC because it is not that serious. I also know a lot of the girls on the team because I would practice with them over the summer or I would want to go to a D2 school to play, nothing too serious or even D3. I don’t want it to be anything crazy.”
Me: “Any D1, D2, D3, or D4 college is great!”
Perez: “Yeah it is, honestly, I just want to play. I just want to do the sport and not get crazy good at it. I know I am pretty alright, but honestly I just want to play it. I love it so much.”
Me: “What do you love about water polo?”
Perez: “I love my team and I love the people that I have met throughout playing. I like how it’s something I never thought I would do. I didn’t even know what water polo was up until my 8th grade year because my brother started to play it. I never thought I would be decent at water polo, so now I think I am and I love it. I feel prior to playing water polo I was never really good at a sport. Finally working my way up to become better at a sport, I love it so much.”
Me: “That is amazing, it sounds like a lot of fun. How long have you been playing water polo for?”
Perez: “I started playing my freshmen year, so this is going to be my fourth year playing. I never swam prior to high school, I never played prior to high school.”
Me: “What did you have to be able to play in college?”
Perez: “I think the number one thing is to just be good and you have to like the sport too. You need to have a lot of motivation in that sport because you can’t join that sport and not give it your all because it is a lot. You can’t join any sport in college and not know what you are doing. You need to practice and understand the game.”
Me: “What do you think you have to do to be good?”
Perez: “You can practice all you want, but if you only know the individual skills, you get in the pool and not know how to play the game. I know a lot of girls who only know the individual skills, but don’t understand the game. That is okay, even for me I don’t understand the game sometimes. The biggest thing is understanding the game and being good at it.”
Me: “Why would you want to play in college?”
Perez: “I would want to play in college because I like the sport a lot. I have had a lot of fun playing throughout high school, if I would play I think it would be because I wouldn’t want to let go of it and leave it in high school. I would like to move on to another level of water polo. I feel like if I moved on to a college that was not JC, it would help me get to know different people. Right at the start I would have a team that I would be surrounded by constantly. I know for water polo you are constantly with your team, that is how I met my best friends. They are graduated now, but when I was a freshman and they were all sophomores, we stayed together all the way through high school. That was my group and the ones I hung out with. I feel if I did go play in college I would meet another group of girls that I would get close with.”
Me:”I agree with that very much, when you play a sport you automatically make friends! Do you think it is hard juggling school and water polo at the same time?”
Perez: “Yeah it is, but I feel that it is my senior year I want to be good at water polo. I don’t want to look back and think, “Oh my god,” I didn’t do everything I could do for water polo.”
Me: “You said you started thinking about playing in college this year, were there any other years you started to think of playing college water polo?”
Perez: “Honestly, no because I was closer to a lot of the girls who graduated already, the seniors. Once I saw them playing in college, then going to play at JC and once I started to see my brother play at JC. I thought, “all these people I know are going to play at JC or college, so maybe it is something I could do,” now I am seeing more people do it that I know personally. I never saw any juniors or seniors I knew in my sophomore year go play in college, but once I saw my friends do it, it became an option in my head.”
Me: “Did you ever have a burn out period when you were playing water polo?”
Perez: “Yes, it was mostly swimming. I just swam so I could stay in shape for polo.”
Me: “ Any tips for kids who want to play water polo in college?”
Perez: “I would say just get into, that is all you can do. Start playing, you can’t do it without doing it. Just do it!”
Me; “I agree, just do it! Thank you Alex.”
Blake Bohanan, a senior who plays on the varsity football team.
Me: “Hi, I am Kylie.”
Bohanan: “Hi, I am Blake, nice to meet you.”
Me: “What sport do you play?”
Bohanan: “I play football.”
Me: “Do you want to play football in college?”
Bohanan: “I would play in college, but no.”
Me: “Why do you not want to play in college?”
Bohanan: “ I would have too much stress. I have to worry about school, working a job, and on top of that playing football. It wouldn’t work out with me.
Me: “Yeah, that is understandable. What college would you like to go to?”
Bohanan: “I would like to go to Fresno State.”
Me: “If you were to play in college, what would you be the most excited for?”
Bohanan: “If I were to play, the atmosphere of the crowd and walking out would be amazing.”
Me: ”What do you like about football?”
Bohanan: “Football has been an escape for me since I was in fourth grade.”
Me: “Is that when you started playing football?”
Bohanan: “Yeah.”
Me; “Do you think you are going to miss it?”
Bohanan: “Yeah.”
Me: “Why do you think you are going to miss it?”
Bohanan: “It has been a big part of my life since I was little and I don’t know what I would do if I never play.”
Me: “Did you ever have a burnout period during football?”
Bohanan: “Yeah, it was this past year. After going back to football during November with lifting weights, but when we got the new head coach it created a new love for the game for me.”
Me: “That is all the questions, thank you.”
There you have it, some of your Pitman fall athletes! Let’s wish them the best of luck in their next chapter!