It is easy to see an athlete and only view them for their physical ability. However, athletes have other activities they are impassioned about and devoted to outside of their sport. A fan can assume that athletes do not have time for anything else but sports. When in reality, athletes use their outside passions as an outlet to get away from the constant chaos and stress of sports.
Meet Eileen Stressling and Becca Jewett.
Eileen Stressling is a cross-country and long-distance track runner at Azusa Pacific University and a fifth-year performance major, with an emphasis in classical music. That is not a combination you hear often with being a collegiate athlete.
At a young age, Stressling began running and playing the piano but wasn’t the best athlete.
In high school, Stressling had other ideas about what her future was going to look like.
“If you asked me my senior year if I was going to run collegiately, I would have said no,” Stressling said. “I wasn’t passionate enough to see myself doing it after high school, and I never quite fit in with the athletes or the music people.”
During Stressling’s sophomore year of high school, she felt like she had to choose between music and running. She ended up taking a break from piano to pursue her academics and athletics. Eventually, Stressling came back to piano her senior year, realizing how beneficial it was. Once she got to college, she decided to major in music.
Stressling excelled in both cross-country and music as she progressed through college. She has earned two consecutive PacWest Scholar Athlete of the Year awards for women’s cross-country. She also gathered All-American honors and recently broke the six-kilometer record for Azusa Pacific University.
For Stressling, it was always about more than the accolades.
“I have learned a lot about teamwork through both piano and running. I like being helpful, but if I want to be helpful, I need to be better,” Stressling said. “It truly motivates me, whether that is when I am teaching kids piano or with my teammates.”
Assistant cross-country and track and field coach, Bethany Blomquist, has known Stressling since she was a little girl and has truly seen her growth.
“She is one of the most unique distance runners I have ever coached. We will be on a run and out of the corner of my eye, I will see her pretending like she’s conducting an orchestra,” Blomquist said. “I have seen how music helped her become a better athlete and vice versa.”
Entering her final year at Azusa Pacific University, Stressling is aiming to hold the three, five, and ten-kilometer school records and is hoping for a good senior recital.
Becca Jewett is a sophomore social work major and softball player. She has always had a heart of service and specifically enjoys working with the elderly.
“I had the opportunity to serve at the San Dimas Retirement Center. We would put on activities, crafts, games, and simply talk to them,” Jewett said. “By second semester of my freshman year, I was the lead volunteer.”
Jewett always felt that she had a passion for serving others. Many people she encounters do not have family close by to talk to, leading to a more intentional conversation.
“I love talking with them because they have a lot of wisdom. They love when they have someone to talk to and just joke around with,” Jewett said.
Junior history major and teammate, Kathryn Ung, praised Jewett for the kind of person she is on their team.
“Becca’s love for others shows through her selflessness on and off the field. She is reliable and truly has a heart for helping people,” Ung said. “When she sees that someone is struggling, it is second nature for her to actively seek out ways to help that person.”
Jewett says that it is easy to identify as an athlete because that is how people label her. However, she has learned not to let her athletic label define her.
“I am an athlete but it’s just a platform, not a podium. I want people to talk about me for who I am outside of my sport,” Jewett said.
Athletes are often times put on a pedestal because of the countless sports fans there are across the world. This is not the only thing that defines who they are, but it is easy to be roped into that.
These two student-athletes have proven that they are much more than athletes on the field or on the track. The things they are passionate about outside of sports show that their identities lie in other things, not merely their athletic abilities.