Markus Bizyak '25 Recruiting Profile

Throughout my childhood I struggled with the one thing that seemed to come easy for

everyone else which was to fit in; Whether it was with soccer or just school in general I never fit

in with the right crowd. I was never good enough, smart enough, or funny enough to be included.

As a child I was made fun of for my size and my lack of athletic ability; whether it was my

coaches or fellow students nobody wanted to include me.

Growing up it was tough for me to make friends due to my lively personality, which most

of the time was viewed as annoying. On top of the constant bullying and feeling of being

unwanted, my home life also became challenging. At a young age my grandma had started to

develop dementia then at the age of 9 my family made the decision that she would live with us

full time. At the age of 11 I started to help out with the caretaking of my grandma. As a kid it

was really tough on me not only because of the responsibility, but because I had to watch the

kindest person I know turn into a stranger in front of my eyes. The responsibility of taking care

of my grandma helped me learn compassion and mature overall as a person whether it was in

school or on the soccer field. It taught me how to stay on top of things, think through certain

situations, and most importantly to not take life for granted.

Although I had this going on in my home life, another large portion of my life was

consumed up by soccer. I have played soccer since I was 5 years old and at the age of 9

developed my love for goalkeeping, Although, I did not really start devoting my time to soccer

until my freshman year. Freshman year I was one of two players from my grade to make Junior

V arsity which was a pretty big accomplishment at the time. This came with a high level of

expectations for a kid who had never had someone take a chance on him in such a meaningful

way.. Everyday I had to improve to prove they made the right decision and it paid off. My

sophomore season I became the starting varsity goalie, Although, this was a monumental

accomplishment I quickly learned the struggles of being the goalkeeper. Every other position on

the field is allowed to make a few mistakes per game and just easily forget about it; However, for

a goalie one mistake can cost the team the game which can really deplete your confidence. As a

young keeper it took me a while to learn how to combat the underappreciation for being a goalie,

but at the end of my junior year I finally felt as if I learned how to handle the pressure. If there is

one thing being a goalie has taught me, it is that mistakes are inevitable and you can either learn

from them and improve or just let them consume you. This new mentality has allowed me to not

only become a better player, but as a person.

Having to witness my Grandmas succumb to dementia, it opened my eyes to the true

value of life. In order to live life to the fullest you have to live, learn and grow from your

mistakes and realize that as long as you don't let it define you, it's not the end of the world. I’ve

faced many challenges in my life and what I am most proud of is that everytime I chose to rise

rather than fall. There was many times I was brought to my knees, literally, but I made the choice

to face my challenges head on. The totality of my life experiences have prepared me well for my

next chapter.