Christopher Zabala '23 Recruiting Profile

Many particular, both great and unlucky details in my life have influenced the man that I am becoming. For starters, I have a family that would do absolutely anything to help me succeed. I fell in love with a sport that has impacted my life in the best way possible. I have had medical issues that put things into perspective for me, and all while losing a relationship with my father. 

     I would love to stress the fact that my mother, and step-father have been my inspiration since I was a child. Life was not easy on them, and they still managed to create a better life for me. They brought me to the United States from Colombia in hopes to create more opportunities for me. I have a little sister who follows in my footsteps so I try to be the best I can for her. I would like to show her that anything is possible, and that I am here to prove it. My step-father works all day, and still makes me and my sister his number one priority. My mother works, cooks for the family, and goes to school to learn English. She is the most selfless and hardworking person I know.

     My biological father was the person who introduced me to the sport that makes me who I am today. Unfortunately, my father chose to leave my life and I was not sure that I would ever be the same after that. That is when I continued to play the sport and realized that it is the sport itself that makes me a stronger person. It has now been 9 years since he left, and even though he hurt me, he did not break me. I will always appreciate him for exposing me to the sport that makes me feel free. Soccer has given me confidence, has taught me the definition of teamwork and has instilled an unbelievable work ethic in me. 

      My goal for academics is to be a good student athlete in both high school and college. Throughout the years I have gained an interest in criminal justice, and I find myself asking more and more questions about it. I will admit that I have not always applied myself in school but I now understand that education is key to succeeding in life. I want a chance to continue my education and be a student athlete in a college that fulfills my dreams. Overall, my goal is to make my parents and little sister proud of me.

    Moving from an entirely different country was one of the many obstacles I had to overcome. Luckily, I was able to pick up a second language fairly quickly. I also suffered from epilepsy at a young age. I remember I wouldn’t be able to play soccer without having the urge to have a seizure. Losing control of my entire body was the scariest experience I ever had. I was really scared that my health would prevent me from doing what I love most, playing soccer. Fortunately, a few years passed and now I have overcome that illness. I am not worried that I would get it again because I believe  god put his hands on me and is taking care of me.

    Through all of these experiences, I now possess the ability to adapt to different situations, I have developed avid social skills, and even though I lost connection with my father, my step-father falls nothing short of what a real father is like. I guess it is fortunate to be unfortunate. Without these experiences, I would not be where I am today. I am trilingual knowing the languages English, Spanish and Italian. I have endured significant changes in my life, but the most constant thing that has kept me structured has been my love for the game.