Ashten Pierson (Softball, Creighton University) grew up in Wamego. HelloNation asks student athletes one question about the place that raised them and records the answer on camera. This is Ashten Pierson’s, in full.
The question
Tell us about a teacher or mentor from high school who challenged you the most or inspired you in a way that still shapes who you are today. Who are they, and what lesson from them do you carry into your life now?
The answer, as recorded
Transcript. What follows is a transcript of the video above, in Ashten Pierson’s own words. It has not been rewritten, and no part of it was drafted for them.
One mentor that really impacted me in Womego was my high school basketball coach Brian McIntosh. Growing up in a small town, coaches become more than just your coach. They help shape who you are as a person. Coach McIntosh challenged me every single day to work hard, stay disciplined, and compete with grit no matter the situation. He taught me that toughness isn't just about sports, it's about how you handle life, adversity, and the people around you. Being from a small town and having mentors like him helped build me into the gritty and humble person I am today. The biggest thing I still carry with me is to stay hard-working, stay grounded, and always be someone your teammates and people around you can count on. And then last but not least, keep my faith strong. I know that no matter what I do in life, God is going to guide me there and he's gonna take me where I need to be in life. And I think keeping my faith strong and playing for something bigger than just the sport is really important to me. I want to play for God because he gave me the glory to do what I love and he's gifted me with a million different things and I just want to be that person that isn't so grounded in just the sport but also grounded in my faith.
Recorded by HelloNation as part of its athlete voices program and published by Hello Newswire, HelloNation’s good news newswire. The words are the speaker’s own.
Reported by Hello Newswire.