By Rachel Collins
Competing in sports while in high school can have a positive effect on the lives of students.
“My favorite part about being a student athlete while in high school is learning about leadership and teamwork,” Kitchen said. “I believe that this will prepare me for when I enter into the real world, helping to build my character.”
As a junior at Grove High School, Madelyn plays the positions of forward, wing, attacking mid and defender on the girls soccer team.
“One of my biggest role models is my mom because no matter what she has always had my back and showed me the way, ” Kitchen said. “My mom has always been there to help guide me through any obstacles that I encounter in sports and in school.”
Even though there are positives when it comes to participating in sports, there can also be negatives.
“My least favorite part about being a student athlete is the limited social life,” Kitchen said. “Because I play a sport, I tend to skip out on school dances and hanging out with my friends to attend practices and play in games.”
During the span of her career, Kitchen has achieved many things on the field but has one that stands out to her the most.
“My biggest accomplishment as a student athlete is breaking the scoring record my freshman year, and then beating the scoring record my next year as a sophomore.”
Madelyn plans on beating her previous scoring record this year as a junior, wanting to have the most soccer goals at Grove.
“My definition of success is achieving personal goals and being able to do something that I enjoy,” she states.
When asked who her athletic inspiration is, Madelyn stated, “Michael Jordan. He was told he would never play college basketball by his high school coach and now he is one of the greatest basketball players ever.”
When asked what the best advice was that she has received, Madelyn said, “The best advice I have received has been from my mom who is my best coach because she knows me better than anyone and has always told me to let the hard work and talent do the talking.”
