College of Saint Benedict Athletics

Who is one of your female role models and share one attribute that you wish to model after?

One of my female role models is actually a volleyball player from last year Beth Hanson. She sticks out because I always think back to our first game against St. Thomas last year. We were not doing very well when a UST player came crashing through the net and landed on Beth's ankle, which she later discovered was a level three sprain.  She said tape me I’m playing. She was diving, running, and jump setting with an ankle twice the size it should be. She is an inspiration to our whole team and I want to show that strength and dedication to my team each and every game just like Beth. Playing through games and giving everything you have no matter what is something I learned from her.


Please share a favorite leadership quote or leadership book (if it is a book, feel free to share additional comments about the book).

One of my favorite leadership quotes is “A chain is only as strong as its weakest link.” I’m not sure who said this but it describes a team perfectly. It means that every team wins and losses together. Everyone is important but it doesn’t matter if you have a few great players, teams win because their whole team is great and work together. If one person on the team is not pulling their weight, there is room for failure or losing. A team is only as good as their weakest player. This is why each individual should always strive to be the best they can be.


What other CSB/SJU clubs, organizations and volunteer work are you involved with? What one aspect has helped you in your personal and professional growth?

One thing that I really like about CSB volleyball is that we are sponsoring a young girl named Mikaela. This is through the Friends of Jaclyn Foundation. This foundation pairs children with pediatric brain tumors with sports teams. We adopted Mikaela last year and it is so wonderful! She comes to almost all the home games, along with her family. They eat pre-game dinners with us and sometimes stop in on a practice. Mikaela and her family have even came with the volleyball team to a few CSB basketball games to cheer with the team. It is a great experience and we love having them around in season and out of season. This experience has also really helped me since I plan on being a teacher in the future. It shows me another area of struggle in which children may face. It is good to now have an insight of how pediatric brain tumors affect children.