Love of the Game by Nickolas

Love of the Game by Nickolas - January 2017 Scholarship Essay

My name is Nick and I started playing the sport of box lacrosse (indoor) when I was 13 years old. I started this extracurricular activity as a way to stay in shape for hockey. In the summer there were not many sports that I was interested in, so my uncle gave me a lacrosse stick and wanted to see if I would be interested in trying it as a sport. My first game I scored 2 goals and instantly fell in love with the sport. This led me to playing 9 more years, I spent countless hours practicing on my own, passing against a wall, watching film on professionals to see how they played. This time and effort I put in made my talents grow, which gave me an offer to go play college lacrosse in Phoenix, AZ at Grand Canyon University. I was the first person from my hometown of Lethbridge, AB to play lacrosse at the collegiate level, I credit this due to a lack of scouting and player knowledge on how to use lacrosse as a catalyst to get a college education.

I realized that I had done something special and this lead me to make a difference in the lacrosse community. I started volunteering as a head coach for youth ages 13-15, in the summer when I was back from school. In addition to head coaching I also, assisted the junior team in Lethbridge, which were ages 16-21 (the year’s most of them started looking at post-secondary education). I used this time to help players improve their game, while also finding connections and recruiters that could help them use their talents to receive a college education that many of them had never thought possible. I have since helped 4 players connect with colleges in the United States in hopes of getting an opportunity to continue playing the sport that they love, while also receiving a higher education. Lacrosse has given me so much that I want to give back to the community. By volunteering my time and effort to those just discovering the sport, or wanting to take the next step in developing their game. I want to continue to coach and make a difference in the community for many years to come.