By Ellie Seta
<[email protected]>

From the beginning of high school, Erika Petruzzi, varsity softball player and senior, said she has had her eye on an athletic scholarship. She said she marketed herself by going to exposure camps and keeping close contacts with college coaches. But she was always conscious of her grades and her other priorities.

“School is very important if not more important than my sport because you can’t get into college without grades,” Petruzzi said.

Petruzzi’s hard work paid off recently because she has earned an athletic scholarship to Purdue to play softball, but she said despite that reward, her grades still always come first.

Beth Reimbold, varsity volleyball player and sophomore, said that she also hopes to get an athletic scholarship to a division one school. Reimbold, like Petruzzi, is also focused on school as well as her sport.

Athletics Director Jim Inskeep also stresses the importance of academics for student athletes. “There are a lot of NCAA requirements (for hopeful scholarship students) that include academic eligibility and course load requirements,” Inskeep said. “They should decide early on if they want an athletic scholarship. They must remember that the high school clock is always ticking.”

Motivation is another concern regarding pursuing athletic scholarships. Inskeep said that motivation is the key to success. He also said that most student athletes are pretty much self motivated. “Students here are so successful because they are constantly surrounded by success,” Inskeep said.

Reimbold said that she is motivated by her parents and her older sister, who received a volleyball scholarship to IUPUI.

“My parents really push me,” Reimbold said. “They also compare me to my sister and they say that if she could do it then so could I. Also, college is a lot of money and volleyball is a great way to go for free.”

Reimbold said that her older sister has also kept her motivated. “She is helping me with the whole application process,” Reimbold said. “She also gives me a lot of confidence and motivation to keep playing.”

Petruzzi said she has always been very self-motivated. “I tell myself if I don’t get good grades, I won’t get into college,” Petruzzi said.

Inskeep also said that athletes should keep their options open. “For everyone the ball stops bouncing one day,” Inskeep said. “So athletes should still take academics seriously. Very, very few college athletes get to play sports professionally so athletes should always have a second plan. That is why I suggest keeping options open by picking a school with an (academic program) that interests them.”

Even with a school of over 4,000, Inskeep said that, on average, only around 30 to 40 students here receive athletic scholarships, which further emphasizes the need to perform well academically.

Like Inskeep, counselor Shelly Rubinstein also said students should keep their options open. “It is so competitive you can’t just count on one aspect of your life to get you in,” Rubinstein said. “Ultimately even the best student athletes need to be educated.”

Rubinstein said that the smart way to go about getting an athletic scholarship is to first register with the NCAA. After that, students should talk to coaches and the athletics director about their intentions to pursue an athletic scholarship. Then students should finally alert counselors to let them know that they are serious about this goal, so that they can plan their academic schedule accordingly.

“I treat athletes just like I do any other student. They still need to have a balanced schedule and pass their prerequisite classes, while still leaving time to focus on their sport,” Rubinstein said. “I also suggest summer school so that they can get a tough class out of the way to be less pressured during the year.”

Inskeep and Rubinstein both said that in the end it is all about balance.

“Our coaches always remind us that we are student athletes,” Petruzzi said. “But student always comes before athlete.”

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HIGH SCHOOL SENIOR STUDENT ATHLETES NATIONWIDE

• Men’s Basketball: 156,096
• Women’s Basketball: 129,408
• Football: 306,221
• Baseball: 134,477
• Men’s Soccer: 102,553

WWW.NCAA.ORG/SOURCE