*First and foremost, I am in full understanding of health being first as a result of these cancellations and am not by any means using this platform as a protest or petition in any way. Everything spoke of in this article is words of encouragement and positivity towards those who were devastated from not being able to compete this semester.*
In this week's edition of “The Warrior Voice” I took the time to chat with Senior student-athletes Anthony Torreullas and Marina Zardet. This week, I chose to name the topic “Seniors, We Love You” to bring positivity and encouragement to the Seniors across the Warrior family that were forced to discontinue the current and upcoming spring seasons due to the CoronaVirus Pandemic. Me being a Senior myself, my spring track season was cut short due to a knee injury occurring towards the end of the indoor season; So I know the feeling of every senior right now that is unable to compete. This tough situation affected many across the world, causing jobs and schools, and even professional sports to suspend/shut down. These Seniors had a lot to share about their experience with the Pandemic currently going on and more importantly a lot of words for the seniors that are unable to finish their last seasons. The cancellation of sports for the remainder of the semester was shocking news to me being the fact that I looked forward to watching my teammates strive and help coach them as I recovered from my own injury. Marina and Anthony both felt shocked as well, just as anyone felt about this whole situation. “ When our coach texted us, it really set in that it was happening. The 2 other seniors on my team felt heartbroken and the team overall was hurt from the news,” Marina stated.” Anthony added “We were really shocked at first, and didn’t think it would happen. But once we saw some of the professional teams suspend their current seasons, we grew the thought that it was a possibility of cancelling for us.”. Like I stated, many seniors reacted similarly to this news, and it really gave an instant “well what's next?” thought in our heads. I knew when I found out that I needed surgery that my season was most likely over. I thought about how I could focus on my academics more and prepare myself for my future after graduating. Anthony had a similar response saying “ I knew I’d just be doing school work with the extra time from not having anything baseball-related, so it's a good time to work time management with my academics.”. Marina spoke about how she instantly thought about how things would work with graduation, and not having an actual senior day. “ I thought about what would happen next with not being able to have a senior day or even graduation if it was to get canceled as well.". We (seniors) all can think about the different influences that our sports have had on us. In the long run, our sports careers can and have opened doors for us; I asked Marina and Anthony about the overall effect that their sport has had on them. “Playing tennis has had a positive effect on me, opening doors for me to become a grad assistant at DeSales University (lord willing with the current pandemic).". Anthony had a different approach as he preached about the different things from the game that he can take into the real world. “ I take a lot from controlling what you can control. In baseball, you strike out and learn to keep moving forward after.”. I noted when he said “moving forward after, and loved the relation striking out had with life. We will fall down and strike out at times, but we have to continue to control everything we can control and move forward in any way possible. In times of difficulty and controversy, I was always taught to identify the positives in every negative situation. Throughout this tough time, I looked at it as a time to isolate and focus on one self's health, mental and physical. Many athletes may look at the NCAA granting them an additional year as a positive. So I asked Anthony and Marina, “What is another positive that can be drawn from the Senior cancelation, as well as the whole pandemic?”. Marina stated that, “ Well, everything happens for a reason, and this can just be setting us up for something better to occur in the long run.”. I'm a firm believer in God and having faith, and it stood out to me when Marina touched on things happening for a reason. We may not know why the things that do happen happen, but ensure that our faith does not break for every negative, a positive lesson can be drawn out. Anthony added “It's a blessing in disguise just because it's something we never experienced before and I'm big on taking on adversity as an opportunity to grow. This tough situation can be something we can take as an opportunity to enjoy family and preparing yourself to become better in whatever aspect. Noted the fact that Anthony mentioned family, which is a good way to look at this situation. A lot of the athletes that compete are away from family a lot due to away trips and even some international students who don’t go home often; This could be a great time to reconnect with loved ones. Being a senior comes with a lot of reminiscing on the good times that were spent with our teams and coaches. We try to cherish every moment as an athlete and leave marks for our underclassmen to pick up at. The next question I asked was “ What was your best cherished moment here at ESU as a student-athlete?”. “When I got PSAC Player Of The Week, it was a great feeling because it felt like the work I was putting in was paying off and my teammates were even more proud of the accomplishment!” , Marina stated. Anthony went on to say.”The travel trips we take every year for the first game because it's a fun time traveling with the whole team and the built-up energy for the season finally gets to come out!”. I definitely can relate to both responses, with being named athlete of the week, it does bring sort of a confidence booster because you know that the work you are putting in is paying off and will only push you to perform even better; And it's nothing like the first football game of the season, releasing all the emotions that have been stored since the last time you’ve touched the field! We discussed a lot in this week's post about the pandemic and cancellation of the spring semester sports, and towards the end, I asked if they had any last words of positivity to the seniors and underclassmen. Anthony went on to say “To the seniors, continue to brace the challenge! This is obviously something we’ve never experienced but there are a lot of positive lessons that can come from things we have no idea about.” And to the underclassmen, I would say to appreciate the small things! Appreciate the day to day things at practice etc, those are the things that really matter when you look back!". Marina also added that “We are in this together! We can all get through it together and lean on each other. To the underclassmen, live in the moment! and not think too ahead in the future.”. Marina and Anthony both gave some great words for our seniors as well as the underclassmen who can certainly learn from this too. Marina Zardet is a Senior Tennis player from Coplay, Pennsylvania majoring in Criminal Justice and Sociology, going on to become a Grad Assistant at Desales University. Anthony Torreullas is a Senior utility player from Lancaster, Pennsylvania majoring in marketing who will pursue a career in his field after baseball. My last words to our seniors are that we are all in this together and I know that this situation is rough, but we can take the time to self reflect and focus on keeping our faith from being broken. To the underclassmen, take nothing for granted! Every practice, every game, every film meeting….take it like it’s your last because we never know when our last performance will be. As always, I had a blast talking to Marina and Anthony on the positives of this rough situation, and through it all, we will continue with “The Warrior Voice” weekly! Stay tuned for Week for 4! Seniors…. WE LOVE YOU!
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In week 2 of “The Warrior Voice” I took the time to sit down with Marc Rodriguez and Marissa Govan on the topic of “Impacts of Team Leadership”. I personally look at leadership as being a key factor in successful teams. When the standard is set, leaders are ones who make sure the limits are pushed to help elevate the team’s performance. With being a leader within our student-athlete advisory committee, I find it interesting to know the different styles of leadership that flow throughout our athletic teams. Both Marc and Marissa are called on as captains but as we know, titles don’t make a person, and that's just how Marissa started off her interview when asked the first question….
I believe there is no one definition of leadership, so when asked both athletes for their definition, I was able to sync in the leadership personalities that both may obtain. “I think leadership doesn’t necessarily have to be defined as a role, but is displayed by positive actions to help bring the team together to achieve its goal.”, Marissa stated. I was able to note how Marissa talked about some may look at leadership as just a title, but without actions the title/role isn’t effective for the team. This may be common in some teams where ones who are elected as captains or leaders but aren’t effective in the role. Marc went on to say “I think a true leader is someone who has a relationship with the team and can pull out the best in everyone.” I followed up with asking about the importance of leadership in team success, and both strongly agreed to the importance it plays in a team being successful! [Marissa]“I think leadership is a crucial part of success in teams. I found that if a team doesn't have solid leadership, things can start to get a little crazy and the vision may begin to get blurry.” I noted how Marissa spoke on the vision getting blurry. Being on the same page as a team will play a huge part in the long run, because as we’ll speak on later in the post, every team gets hit with a stomp in the road! Mark added that “It's important because a team needs someone to be that backbone to assist everyone on being on the same page. If everyone is not on the same page, there's a lack of leadership which can affect a team's overall success.” I liked where Marc was stressing the point of being on the same page! As we mature as athletes, we come to realize that we trust the teammate next to you to fulfill their job or role in the competition. As you might know, positivity is stressed a lot with leadership. But I wanted to get an idea of what Marissa and Marc would say are negative traits that a leader should not possess or act as. Marissa began with “I would think demanding instead of participating within your team would be negative. It’s easy to point fingers, but it takes a leader to show you the way!” Yes! She’s right. Anyone can indeed point the finger, but being a leader means that you guide and instruct the mistakes! Leading by example at its best! Marc spoke on a great point of leaders remaining open minded and not thinking that they should have to stop learning. “Just because you are called to be a caption doesn’t mean you stop learning. Having the open mindedness of wanting to learn every day is everything.” Both athletes do have leadership roles on their respective teams, and as I began to discuss the common styles of leadership (Democratic, Autocratic, Laissez-Faire), both athletes quickly identified their style. [Marc] “I like to focus on building my team up through optimism. I might be laid back at times to give my teammates that slight freedom; also big on encouraging my teammates to call me out if I'm not bringing enough energy”. Sometimes leaders do need to be called out, and it's not always a bad thing. Having multiple leadership roles myself, I find it beneficial when coaches or faculty tell me what I could be better at. Marissa went on to add “I feel like in certain situations my leadership style might change, and I can adapt to my teammates and the situation. I noted Marissa mentioning adaptability, which in my opinion is a huge key in leadership. Knowing your teammates and how to help them grow in certain situations is big. Like mentioned earlier, every team will eventually meet a stomp in the road. When adversity hits, a team can kind of freeze up and this is where a leader is most important to step up! So I asked, how important do you think leadership is in that moment of adversity and what are ways you try to lead in that situation? [Marissa] “A lot of times in the situation of adversity, teammates are going to look for someone to lead the way. When something happens, it's very important to have that leader that the team can learn from and help guide the right direction. Some ways I try to get my team to respond to adversity is bringing them up with positivity!” Marc added “It is important to have someone who is calm through the rough stretches of a game because energy can be contagious, and if someone who is considered a leader begins to act out on the team the wrong way, then the whole team can then fall apart. There is a way to call someone out or correct them, but if you are bringing negative energy into it, you aren't really leading in the best way possible”. Both Marissa and Marc expressed positivity as a huge role in leadership which is something I express as well! Trying to stay positive will take you a long way in sports and can have an immediate impact on the people around you. Towards the end of interviewing both athletes, I pondered on the possibility of their being some negatives that come with being a good leader. [Marc] “I feel like decision making or having to be real with everyone can sometimes go the wrong way for some. “Sometimes teammates may not agree with you, but respectfully they must know a good leader/captain only wants what's better for them and the team.” I noted how he addressed decision making as a way some may disagree, but good leaders do indeed know what's best, and strive to bring growth on its teammates! Marissa stated “I find that it's sometimes hard to navigate that line of “am I pushing it too much?, or not doing enough? as a leader.” We as leaders have a way of feeling things out too, so I felt where Marissa was coming from with this point. In the end, I asked if they could both describe a time when their team faced adversity and leadership played an important role to overcome the bump. [ Marissa] “There was this one time we were losing badly…and one of our teammates started reciting all the ways we worked hard to be here with the early morning workouts and things. This got us all hyped up to turn things around.” Me personally I believe you shouldn’t have to flip a switch to play well or motivation to play well; But in certain moments, there might come a time where you have to revert back to your training when things get tough! Marc described a game earlier this year when they were kind of in a drought and hungry for a win. “Earlier this year, I think we were 8-6 at the time, and we were at a tough point in the schedule. I just kept telling the guys to stay positive! And keep striving! We’ve been on an 8-game win streak since that game, and I know spreading that positivity in the moment of difficulty helped guide us on the road we’re on.” These were both powerful, yet real life experiences where leadership had a tremendous effect on a team's success. I think we sometimes overlook leadership as just a title but like Marissa stated earlier “leadership is displayed by one's actions!”. I had a great time catching up with Marissa and Marc about this extraordinary topic. Marc Rodriguez is a RS-Sophomore guard from Philadelphia, Pa majoring in Exercise Science, currently leading the Warriors in the playoffs to make a strong push for a PSAC title! Marc looks up to Coach Wilson, Coach Kaba and Tim Tebow as influential leaders. Marissa Govan is a RS- Sophomore Center Fielder from Bucks County, Pa majoring in nursing, who also is leading the Warriors at the start of their season. Marissa looks up to Dr. Munford who has been an influential figure at ESU with academics and athletics! It was interesting hearing the different influential leaders that both athletes look up to! And I think we all can point out valuable points of leadership from the discussions I had with both athletes! This was another successful week of “The Warrior Voice”, and as always, stay tuned next week for Week 3! |
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AuthorJamal Cooley Archives
April 2020
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