There’s so much more to sports than the two numbers on the scoreboard at the end of a game that tell you which team won and which team came up short. The circus catches and game-winning shots are great, but they’re not the reason parents get their kids involved in sports from the day they learn to walk.
Sports teach you how to work with others. They teach you responsibility. They teach you how to better manage your time. But most importantly, they teach you to get back up no matter how hard you get knocked to the ground.
In short, sports prepare kids for life and its many hurdles.
Ali Treglia is the starting point guard at State College Area High School, but it’s her efforts off the basketball court that truly separate her from her peers. As a senior, Treglia maintains a 3.9 GPA. She wants to go to the United States Naval Academy after graduating, where she plans on studying engineering.
While most of her classmates are experiencing symptoms of “senioritis” with their High School careers winding down and the acceptance letters from the colleges of their choice piling up in the mail box, Treglia keeps her foot on the pedal.
Between basketball, academics and the many extra curricular activities she’s involved in, Treglia doesn’t have much time to be a normal kid. Whenever she does have a few hours to herself, Treglia indulges in an array of outdoor activities. Hiking is one of her favorite things to do. She doesn’t get to see her friends as much as she’d like to, but she makes time for them whenever she can. They have known her for years so they understand what Treglia’s all about.
Treglia could have easily gotten complacent and decided to take easy courses senior year, but she challenged herself with advanced placement classes anyways. She could have dropped some of the extra curricular activities so that she can enjoy the last few months she has of being able to see her friends every day. She didn’t even consider any of the aforementioned scenarios.
Basketball and great parenting. Treglia credits these two things for molding her into the young woman she’s become. She said there’s no way she would have accomplished all that she has without the support of her parents. They’re the one’s who have pushed her to strive for success in the classroom. They’re the one’s who have, for years now, been driving Ali to her tournaments, which sometimes are three or four hours away. Ali’s parents have always been there her and she’s doesn’t take them for granted one bit.
In the seventh grade, one coach said something Treglia will never forget. He told her that she will never be much better than average on the court. That stuck with Ali and she made sure to prove him wrong. Treglia says that playing basketball has disciplined her. It’s also where she’s met some of her best friends. She couldn’t imagine her life without the game that she so dearly loves.
When asked about her proudest moment, Treglia mentioned her ill grandmother who lives in Altoona and had never gotten to see her play basketball. A few years ago, Ali had a tournament in Altoona and her grandma finally had a seat in the bleachers for one of her games.
The game that Treglia loves with the people she loves, all at once.