The 2021 sports season looked a little different for two sport athlete, Charley Ryan, while she has been recovering from an ACL injury. While she was unable to play soccer or flag football for Steinbrenner during her senior year of high school, she still remained engaged in the action and always supported her teammates. These were some of the contributing factors to her nomination and becoming the recipient of the first annual Athletic Booster Club’s Coach’s Choice Award.
“Recipients of this award are all nominated by the coaches and they are recognized for their work ethic, character and charisma,” Maura Weins, Steinbrenner’s Athletic Booster Club Membership Chair, said at the presentation of the award.
Ryan has demonstrated perseverance and immense sportsmanship despite being injured. She accepted the opportunity to remain involved with the flag football team and showed her support at practices and games throughout the season. Her optimistic approach helped her earn recognition through receiving this scholarship award.
“My positive attitude on and off the field, my support even though I was injured and my love for both of the sports contributed to me winning this award,” Ryan said.
Putting aside the disappointment of missing out on the last year of playing high school sports, Ryan continues to highlight the importance of holding a positive outlook on any situation and demonstrates strong character and dedication to the sports she enjoyed for many years prior to her injury.
“I didn’t get to play at all for both of my sports due to my required recovery time, meaning I did miss out on my very last season of high school athletics,” Ryan said. “I stayed involved in flag football by cheering on the team and assisting with tasks as needed.”
Clearly embodying the desired traits for this award, Ryan’s coaches didn’t let her contributions to her team go unnoticed, even if it looked different than playing on the field.
“I was very happy to feel recognized for these reasons, my injury made me feel like I was unable to participate as much as I would have liked,” Ryan said, “but I was unable to stop smiling when they announced my name.”
After recovering from her injury, and graduating from high school, Ryan plans on using this scholarship award and the meaning behind it as part of her inspiration in the near future.
“It’s going to help keep me motivated to continue sports in college and it will also help pay for a portion of my tuition,” Ryan said.
Kaitlyn Estrada // Staff Writer
