By: Alexis Ruvalcaba
Danelle Bentiz (Dani) is a Captain of El Diamante’s soccer team and has played soccer for almost 10 years. She has recently committed to California State University, Chico. Due to her hard work and determination, she will continue her career playing DII soccer.
Dani has been playing for ELD Varsity soccer since she was a freshman. She explained “The girls make it very fun. It’s obviously very different from club, but I think the girls make up for it.”
Dani plans to major in kinesiology in college. She has visited Chico State three times and enjoyed it every time. She explained that she was sold on their university because “They have great coaches, and [her] cousin goes there too”. She mentioned that those factors can be a major help in adjusting to college life.
College can be scary because of the new environment, people, and place. Dani agrees and hopes she learns how “To be more independent and have better time management since I’m going to have a lot going on at college.”
In her commitment journey, Dani experienced crucial moments that shaped her pathway. Dani claims, “My hardest challenge was the mental battle of it all, having to keep up with the expectations of school and on the field”. Many athletes or professionals struggle with these challenges, and it’s important to acknowledge the “mental battle” that often gets overshadowed in the athletic sphere.
The recruiting process is pretty difficult. Dani states, “It was very stressful, and I think the most stressful part was emailing before showcases. Despite that, it was all definitely worth it and I feel very relieved now”. For Dani, her commitment to emailing and creating a profile on the type of player she was led her to succeed and eventually get the opportunity to play for Chico State soccer.
Being committed to a college can be stressful, and Dani is very well aware of the expectations from other people, but she states, “I don’t pay attention to what anyone else thinks really”.
Now that Dani has completed an amazing achievement, her plan to adjust to college life is to “just prepare [herself] to play in college, […] now I have to work for my spot on the team”.
Through her hard work, Dani achieved a remarkable milestone in the sport she dedicated much of her life to. She will continue to strive until it’s her time to enter Chico State University, and will hopefully lead a lasting impact on younger girls who are just as determined to play.