Bigger Goals In Mind
September 08, 2009 03:24 PM | Cross Country
By Steve Stone for MSNsportsNET.com
September 7, 2009
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| Saffel |
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The realm of Division I collegiate sports can sometimes be a double-edged sword for any athlete.
The commitment and dedication it takes to succeed seems like a 24/7 task, yet the primary reason to be at a university is to earn a degree and get a quality education that will last you a lifetime.
The latter concept is a priority to West Virginia midfielder Heather Saffel, a knowledgeable player who is majoring in exercise physiology. Although she relishes playing for her state flagship university, being an Elkins native, she knows that her future awaits bigger things.
As a redshirt junior, Saffel will have one more year of eligibility after the 2009 season. However, she is looking to graduate early and fulfill her dream of attending medical school at WVU.
"I've been ahead in school since I got here," Saffel admitted. "When I was in high school I took AP classes, and this year I'm taking a few classes that aren't even for my major. I'm ready to start a new chapter in my life. The only question is if I get in or not. I still think I would focus on my school and studies in case I didn't."
Saffel discovered her niche in life after breaking her leg when she was in fifth grade due to a snowboarding accident. Despite suffering an enormous amount of pain, a realization factor clicked in when she became heavily interested in the operation techniques used by her orthopedic surgeon.
"That was the moment when I knew what I wanted to do," Saffel said. "I've always been interested in orthopedic surgery."
Recently, Saffel got a crash course in orthopedic surgery 101, getting to witness firsthand the in's and out's of being an orthopedic surgeon, just like when she was operated on many years ago.
"Over the summer I got to go into the operating room with an orthopedic surgeon and got to see surgeries," Saffel said. "That's what I want to do for sure, although I should reamin open to other things too."
After finalizing her decision to make this her last season, she needed to inform her coaches. Luckily, coach Nikki Izzo-Brown and the rest of the WVU staff took her decision in stride and showed nothing but encouragement for her lifelong goal.
"It was over the summer during one of our day camps (when I told our coaches)," Saffel said. "I told Nikki (Goodenow) I needed to talk to her, I mentioned the idea and she thought it was a good idea and how important it was for my future."
Being one of the nation's elite women's soccer programs, which include nine consecutive trips to the NCAA Championships, a highly dedicated and motivated coaching staff could have easily pleaded with Saffel to gut it out one more season and hold off her future plans. However, Izzo-Brown and the rest of staff exuded their deep beliefs in getting a quality education and pursuing your dreams when the opportunity is there.
Interestingly enough, it wasn't the first life-changing decision Saffel made since coming to WVU in 2006. The Athletic Director's Academic Honor Roll member was originally recruited to Morgantown by cross country/track and field coach Sean Cleary after emerging as a top-notch distance runner at Elkins High.
As much as she enjoys running, her decision to play soccer at WVU was last-minute. After weighing her choices, Saffel decided it was too difficult to give up playing on the pitch, where she was a two-time West Virginia state Midfielder of the Year.
"I originally signed a scholarship to run cross country and track and field," Saffel said. "In July right before I came I decided that I still wanted to play soccer. I always played soccer and then in high school I started running. Once I realized soccer was going to be over I wanted to keep playing, but when it ends I will try to keep running."
The redshirt junior still has big things planned for her final season on the pitch. Saffel produced back-to-back career highs in minutes played at the Penn State Invitational against No. 5 Penn State (29 minutes) and No. 25 BYU (30 minutes), a trend that she looks to continue in what looks to be another prominent year in Morgantown.
But when her career is all said and done, Saffel will be able to look back and be proud of all her accomplishments. She came to WVU as a two-sport phenom, got to compete for a nationally-ranked squad and is ready to pursue a vital medical field.
And what is most important to her is that she is accomplishing all these things at her state-renowned school.
"I would say that I'm very proud of my state," Saffel said. "I am proud of West Virginia and wanted to contribute something good when I came here."
Mission accomplished.
