Kendyl Underwood '20 Recruiting Profile

I love goalkeeping for field hockey because it allows me to think on my feet and use my judgement on how to handle what is coming at me on the field and lead a defense. I used to be an equestrian and leased a horse named Charmer.  Riding Charmer in a ring during events and lessons required good communication between Charmer and me and awareness of all of the other riders and their horses and good and fast decisions about where to go in a ring and how best to direct Charmer.  I think horseback riding helped me improve as a goalie.

I am artistic and I love to paint and to draw freehand on my kickers, which makes me pretty easily recognizable when I am in my GK gear.  I am very social and I like to give my teammates and other goalkeepers in my field hockey club my support on and off the field. 

I am competitive and do not scare away from challenges – the harder the challenge is, and the harder the other team plays against my team, the more I rise to meet the challenge.  If I fall short of my goal, I work harder to improve and I am continuing to learn how to analyze a situation to improve.  I am coachable and always willing to try new things.  I will ask questions to understand why and when some goalkeeping techniques work and some do not.

I want my college experience to help me become well prepared for the challenges of a future career in nursing or athletic training or forensic science, which are passions of mine.  I want to play collegiate field hockey because I love the sport and have already discovered that playing field hockey gives me skills that I will need to succeed such as experience with team participation, and time and stress management.