When I was a freshman, I was given an incredible opportunity to start on my high school’s varsity softball team. It was something I had dreamed about for years, but once the season began, the pressure hit me harder than I expected. I went from being one of the top hitters on my travel team to hardly ever making solid contact at the plate. Every at-bat, I put more pressure on myself, which chipped away at my confidence. For the first time, I wasn’t sure I belonged on that field. That’s when my head travel ball coach stepped in. He had known me for years, watching me during my best games and my worst, and he understood the kind of player and person I wanted to be. Instead of letting me fall deeper into frustration, he reminded me of what I was capable of. He didn’t just give me pep talks, but gave me his time, something I’ll never forget. After long practices, he would stay behind to work with me one-on-one. We’d break down my swing, talk through the mental side of the game, and find small adjustments that slowly brought me back. What stood out most was that he didn’t have to do any of that. He had his own responsibilities and life outside of the game, but chose to invest in me. That kind of dedication left a mark that goes far beyond softball. He never stopped believing in me, even when I was ready to give up on myself. His belief pushed me to work harder, to fight through the slump, and to prove to both of us that I could come back stronger. And I did. By the end of that season, things started to click again. Over the next few years, I grew not only into a more confident player but also a more resilient person. Eventually, I broke my high school’s record for the most home runs ever hit, a moment I’ll never forget. But that record isn’t what means the most to me. What I’ll always remember is the journey to get there, the hours my coach spent helping me rebuild, the teammates who never stopped believing in me, and the lesson that hard work will always overcome a slump. My coach has been there for me through every up and down of my life, not just on the field. He’s celebrated my biggest wins and helped me through my toughest moments. The lessons he’s taught me about perseverance and belief are ones I’ll carry with me forever. I hope to honor that kind of impact by being the same kind of teammate and leader to others. As I look ahead to my senior season and beyond, I’m excited to get back on the field one last time before continuing my softball journey at the collegiate level. I know that everything I’ve learned from my coach, my teammates, and my experiences will guide me as I take this next step. David G. Sutton’s legacy reminds me so much of the values my coach instilled in me: heart, humor, resilience, and the desire to lift others. I’m proud to carry those same values forward and to honor the people who believed in me when it mattered most.

Imagine a small town in the northern part of Pennsylvania where the closest big city, Pittsburgh, is at least three hours away, and if anyone asks about the significance of your little town, you explain to them it’s where the Straub Brewery is located. That town is St. Marys, PA, which is the town where I have lived my entire life. In this town, I have grown as a person both athletically, on the field, and academically, in the classroom. Since I was ten years old, I have played three sports, volleyball, basketball, and softball, and believe me when I say that I can’t imagine my life without a busy schedule. On a normal day, I practice every day for at least two hours, or my team prepares for a game that is after school, so I don’t get home until it’s dark outside, and on the weekends, my family is traveling out of town for a tournament. Some people may think we are crazy, but the amount of memories I have made will be something I will never forget. Along with those experiences, I have learned that hard work pays off because so far throughout my high school career, I have won 4 district championships, set the school record for most home runs hit, and will hopefully hit 1,000 points this basketball season. A scholarship like the Kalia D. Davis Memorial Scholarship will help get me a degree that will allow me to accomplish a dream for my far-away future, that is, for my kids to have the same opportunities that I have had in the sports world, because it’s not cheap. On top of my sports world, my academics have always been very important, partly because both my parents are teachers. I have to make sure that I am caught up with all my schoolwork to continue my position as Vice President of my class and a member of the National Honor Society, as well as high honor roll. I like to tell myself that I work hard in the classroom, so I can continue to work hard on the court or field. As a female, I understand that my priorities have to focus on academics because I can only go so far with my sports. I’m not exactly sure what I want my career to be, but I know that I want to work in the medical field. I enjoy learning about the human body and all the different functions we need to survive. This scholarship will show me that my effort in the classroom has not gone unnoticed and that my goal of working in health care will be one step closer. Throughout all the ups and downs of juggling both my academics and athletics, I have learned many life-long lessons, like hard work paying off and to never give up on a goal. I will always remember the fun and exciting moments that I have gotten the opportunity to have during my sporting events and the work I had to do in the classroom to have those experiences. Even though I grew up in a small town in the middle of nowhere, I have dreams and goals I have accomplished or have yet to accomplish that a scholarship like this would help me achieve.

Throughout my lifetime, I have always prided myself on not gloating or being "cocky" after the success I have had during my sporting events or academics, due to my value of selflessness. To show how selfless I am, I also try to demonstrate a quality like helpfulness. There are a countless number of ways someone could show how they are helpful, but I want to share my experience of helping out my coach to teach younger girls the basics of basketball. During the summer, my basketball coach asked my teammates to help out at the youth camp he was organizing for twelve hours over the course of three days, four hours per day. This wasn't a lot to ask of us since it was during the week in the summer and I thought this would be an exciting opportunity to help some younger girls with skills that I have had to practice since I was their age. When the day came, a couple of us went to help out and our coach was very happy to see us there because of how many young girls had shown up to the camp. He had us work with the girls on ball-handling and shooting and I explained to them how through my years of basketball I have had to be persistent with my training even if I was struggling with a skill in order to be the best basketball player I could be and it paid off when I made the varsity team as a freshman. Every girl is at a completely different skill level at a young age, which made it difficult to come up with drills that everyone could do. Some of them had struggled with certain skills that others didn't, so my teammates and I tried to hype them up, cheer for them, and also challenge them to get better. I got to explain to them how after I am challenged, I try my best to have the mindset to persevere through any failures I face because I know from experience that if I do, it shows during in-game scenarios when it truly matters. I enjoyed telling them about my own big games where we needed a shot or good defense and because I worked hard at practice through the ups and downs I was reliable to be put in and get the job done. After the camp, my coach came up to my teammates and I to show his gratitude towards us for coming to help him and these young athletes. I thanked him for the opportunity because I honestly had a good time sharing my experiences about being persistent and persevering to succeed in a real basketball game. By helping my coach and trying to show selflessness, my hope is that I taught these young girls the steps to how to be the best basketball player and hard working person they can be.