Emilea Stepaniuk '21 Recruiting Profile

    I was first introduced to volleyball when I was 10 years old. At that time, I was in Taekwondo training and playing hockey. Nothing seemed to click with me like the way volleyball did. After moving from Minnesota to Washington State, age 11, I had my first club experience. I had a very passionate and dedicated coach as well as a very positive and talented group of girls to play with. This further strengthened my connection to the game. I now play year-round with club season, beach volleyball season, and high school season. I supplement volleyball with targeted strength/agility training at New Athlete.

    Being competitive and driven, I am my own worst critic. However, I am self-reflective and able to learn from the challenges I push myself through. As I have grown both as a person and a player, I have gained more confidence in sharing my opinions regarding the game play. For example, as a freshman on Varsity, I have learned many leadership skills and how I can be inclusive of all players on the team from my upperclassmen role models. I have become much more comfortable being in a leadership position. Some of the girls that I have met through volleyball have become some of my closest companions, making the sport even more important to me. Playing with varying people each season has allowed me to learn how to interact and get along with different personalities.

           I am fortunate that I can easily understand the mechanics of the game and learn the best opportunities for terminating a play. Likewise, as a back row player, I have learned and I am continuing to learn to respond to the tells of the opposing team. I enjoy the positional and tactical play of the game and have a desire to perform at the highest possible level congruent to my talent and skills.

            Off the court, sometimes my friends refer to me as the “mom.” As I am able to be depended on. However, I have been very independent throughout my life because I feel as though I have always been mature for my age. There have been times where I have felt like I didn’t fit in with some of my friends because they did not understand the maturity of my perspective.

            Currently I have an interest in pursuing a career in medicine and health sciences. I enjoy and excel in the subjects of math and science. I would like to pursue a career in those areas within the medical field. In order to achieve these goals, I try to obtain the best grades possible because I would like to be accepted into a college that will challenge me academically and help me pursue my dreams.