Opportunity

High school can be some of the best, and some of the worst times in a person’s life.  Sometimes it is both!  But one thing that ought to come to everybody’s mind when they hear about high school is opportunity.  All too often there are people who miss this, who overlook it, who take it for granted and who mistake it for a burden.  Not often enough, however, is this great stage of opportunity capitalized upon, and turned into a spring-board to catapult one into something bigger and better than themselves.  That is exactly what Southern Utah University Volleyball player, Rylee Rogers, has done for herself.

When asked what motivated her to go from being a high school athlete to a college athlete, she claimed that it was the motivation and inspiration given by her mother.  “She always taught me to be a team player.  She taught me to make sure that the team looks good before you make yourself look good.  I feel like that might be lost these days, especially when you are trying to get recruited.”  Rylee knows what this is like, being that she chose to come to SUU among many other offers from schools in Utah.

She began setting her sights on college volleyball before she ever even entered high school.  With her family moving from northern California to provide more opportunities for their family, the expectation and anticipation of a shot to play at the next level was heightened.  Riley’s father played in the NFL and her mother played volleyball in college as well. Her whole family is full of athletic enthusiasm, and it has paid off with Riley receiving a full-ride athletic scholarship from SUU. 

Riley says that the most important step she took towards being seen and given offers by the different coaches who approached her was to play on a club team.  While the season happens in the off-season of the normal high school volleyball schedule, this provided great opportunities for her to travel the nation and play in many different venues with many different coaches and scouts watching her.

So many players here at in Southern Utah are stifling their own potential by fixing their sights on merely getting through another year of high school.  Many could set goals and stick to them, just like the Junior for SUU Volleyball has done, and get rewarded heavily for their efforts. According to Riley, "It is so important to give feedback and support in the right way, to build players by teaching them to build the team."  This is what SUU Volleyball is all about.