As a little girl I had one dream: I was going to play basketball for Hopkins Academy. I was gonna be one of the girls that fans would come to see. I dreamed of playing for Coach Ciaglo and maybe even scoring 1,000 points, all while wearing a Hopkins Academy jersey.

But, then I picked up a field hockey stick.

I began playing field hockey as a joke, as a fun side hobby that all in all didn’t matter. It was just fun, but then I fell in love. The constant whistles, the feeling of scoring a goal, stealing the ball or beating a defender, nothing ever competed with this feeling. I loved it too much.

I fell in love with a sport and I never looked back.

I couldn’t play in the fall, and at first that was okay, because I was playing in the winter and spring. But, I came to realize that that wasn’t enough. I needed to play in the fall. I needed a team.

I couldn’t play field hockey at Hopkins Academy, and all my friends were upset for me. They didn’t understand why I couldn’t, it just wasn’t fair.

Some of my friends were more upset then I was. They hurt for me, they empathized with me. They saw that I wasn’t being given an opportunity that I all in all deserved. I deserved to play whatever sport made me happy.

So, I created my own opportunity. I applied to Deerfield Academy.

Deerfield Academy was always a thought in the back of my head, it may have been because my best friend went there or it may have been because I knew in the back of my mind that I needed more than Hopkins had to offer.

Deerfield Academy was a decision that I made. No one else decided for me. I went through the whole process by myself. I scheduled every meeting. Emailed every coach and asked every teacher for the recommendation that I needed. No one but me did the process.

For a while I was torn. Leaving my dream behind, not being able to play for Hopkins Academy anymore. At first I saw more doors closing then opening. I couldn’t even believe that I was actually thinking of leaving.

But, then the doors started to slowly open. Deerfield Academy allowed me to play field hockey, play basketball with my best friend, and to allow my art and my writing to shine. Deerfield Academy gave me more opportunities.

Hopkins Academy will always be in my heart. I owe so much to the tiny school and I would never be able to thank Hopkins enough. I was blessed with meeting so many people. So many teachers(Ms. Judah, Lyndsey, Mr. Vreeland, Angie Cullinan, Mrs. Chapman, Mrs. Niedziela, Mrs. Sorrentino, Christine, Madame Robert, Mr. Green, and Ms. Bernier) who helped to guide me on the path of life, so many people that saw the opportunities that Deerfield Academy had to offer and only offered encouraging words through out the process. Hopkins Academy will always be apart of my dream except now I’m chasing a new one.

My change in school is not going to be easy. I know a lot of people are going to be upset that I left but I can only ask that you support me through out this process. This was my decision and I hope that everyone can accept that.

My new dream is to be wearing a Villanova field hockey jersey and I know by putting away my Hopkins one and putting on a Deerfield one it will only help for this dream to become a reality.

Thanks to everyone who supports me. Who have supported me. I love you all dearly and will never be able to thank you enough.

Thanks to the few that knew before I dropped the “Deerfield bomb” as I’ve been calling it the past few months for not only supporting this but also not making me regret a single second of this whole process. Thanks for reassuring me and thanks for having my back (you know who you are).

Thanks to my parents that have encouraged me to follow my gut since day 1 and giving me their credit card so I could apply to DA.

Thanks to Coach Caroline Stedman who made the process so much easier and welcomed me to Deerfield with open arms and no judgement whatsoever.

And thanks to Megan and Anika who have kept me grounded and pushed me to actually go through with this. Your friendships have meant so much to me and I can’t wait to experience life with you both by my side.

While being at Hopkins I met many people and made many memories and I think now is a great time to share some of those memories with the public.

One time when I was in 8th grade my basketball coach gave me a double high five and I’ve never been so stoked.

This year(2016) when I played against South Hadley the greatest basketball player ever, Sophie Gatzounas and I laughed the whole game and even though I told her this already, that basketball game was the most fun I have ever had while playing a sport at Hopkins Academy. Whether it was my trash talk or her blocking basically every shot I took I was laughing or smiling. Even when she missed that free throw and I saluted her.

One time my friend Ally and I were posing on the basketball court because my dad was trying to take a picture of us. Then on defense she kept trying to kick the ball out of bounds and everyone was confused as to why so I asked her “I thought you were going D1 to play field hockey not soccer, so why are you trying to kick all the balls?” And she laughed.

Before every boys basketball game Ali and I would take a video of Justin Ciaglo swishing a 3 and post it for the whole world of snapchat to see.

During this year of soccer, the defense starting line up would go into a huddle and put their guns in and go “D on 3. 1 2 3 D!”

Allison Kowal-Safron and I became the Splash Bros of Hopkins Academy and this is definitely one of the hardest things to say goodbye too. I am looking forward to watching you grow up and become a doctor. And I still love George.

In 6th grade, Leah, Ali, Margaret, Katie, Cassie, and I made a “Sisters before Misters” group.

Again, I just want to thank everyone for making something so hard to say good bye too. I’ve never felt anything like this before, and I know next year it will be like apart of me is missing, however, I know that all of my true friends will remain by my side through the next couple of years. I am still planning on participating in the community of Hopkins as in going to support my friends and watch them play sports. And I haven’t forgotten any of the road trips I’ve said that we would take (Leah, Ali and I take on QU). And I plan on fully acting those out.

Change is hard, but change is good.

Thank you for supporting me and sharing unconditional love for me and my family. I am so excited for this change.