Nikaya Sarauw '23 Recruiting Profile

Hi, my name is Nikaya Sarauw, and I am currently 15 years old attending the Charlotte Amalie High School on the island of St. Thomas, USVI.

I am sometimes seen as a quite person, but I am also goofy and fun when I think it is appropriate. I am a very observant and ambitious person, and I consider myself fast learner. I focus very strongly on my academics and have been able to maintain a GPA of 97% during this past school year even with school ending prematurely due to COVID-19. While maintaining my GPA, I also participated in multiple extra-curricular activities. These activities included Y-teens, varsity volleyball, club volleyball, junior varsity basketball, majorettes, my church choir, dance, a skit club, and the junior national’s volleyball team. 

When I was younger, I had a lot of family members around me who played volleyball. With them being there I learned the basics from a young age, like passing and the different positions of the court, but I still wanted to make sure that this was the sport I want to play. The only way to do that was to try a few different sports. I’ve participated in track and field, soccer, and basketball but none of them interested me as much as volleyball. I eventually found my way back to volleyball in middle school and was able to join a club outside of school to help build my skills. After that first year I was invited to play with the 16 U Jr. National team and again with the 18 U National team. While playing varsity volleyball, I was the MVP for my team during one of our tournaments where I played outside and opposite the setter, and for a different tournament I was awarded best outside hitter.

My goal is to this year, improve my timing during my approach and setting accuracy, as I am always asked to step up and play multiple roles on the court depending on the game, and coach I’m working with. These two elements could use some precision work. After achieving this goal, I strive to gain either a full sports or academic scholarship to attend a university, where I would like to major in biology and minor in math.  I will then move on to a podiatry school and eventually start my own podiatry clinic in the USVI, where I currently live.  I want to be able to give back to the community that helped to raise me.