It’s every athlete’s dream to become a college athlete, and for four student athletes, that dream became true this April. Amaya Rousseau, Tia Robinson, Dasia Sanders, and Je’May Ward all made college commitments for track and field and volleyball.

Robinson committed to the University of Kentucky for track and field.

“I chose it because I liked the environment and the school itself for its education,” said Robinson. “I felt like I was at home when I was there.”

Since starting track four years ago, Robinson worked hard to be able to play at the collegiate level.

“It took a lot of hard work, pain in my legs, and practicing over the weekends and during summer to get to where I wanted to be,” said Robinson.

Maybe even more stressful than the training was the recruiting process.

“I had a lot of schools call and it was stressful,” said Robinson. “Coaches would call every night and just add to the stress. I ended up taking five visits to schools and chose Kentucky.”

Amaya Rousseau is going to Radford University to play volleyball.

“I chose it because of the great program,” said Rousseau. “My coach Marci Jenkins is known for running a very successful program, having gone to the NCAA tournament twice now.”

Coaching has a strong influence on a player’s success and Rousseau has a great coach to lead her through her college career.

“I feel like I can learn and develop as an athlete there, and hopefully win a title,” said Rousseau.

Rousseau has been working to get better at volleyball since she was nine years old and realized her potential in sophomore year.

“A lot of my teammates were getting offers and committing to college,” said Rousseau. “I realized that I could go to college for this too and started working my butt off. Every day of the week I was in the gym with my trainer, which was really instrumental in getting to where I am now.”

Radford was not Rousseau’s first choice of college. She was interested in Cornell and VCU but they didn’t feel like the right fit.

“Radford wasn’t the first thing on my list, but when I got there, I fell in love with it,” said Rousseau.

The recruiting process was stressful, but getting an offer was a huge relief for Rousseau.

“The recruiting process if very tough, especially for volleyball,” said Rousseau. “It was stressful at times, but once i want on that visit to Radford, it made it all worth it.”

Dasia Sanders and Je’May Ward both committed to Hampton University for track.  Ward is equally as excited about Hampton University’s academics as the athletics.

“I like the campus a lot and I felt like I fit in,” said Ward. “They have an architecture program that I like and a naval ROTC program to go along with a brand new track.”

Ward has been running track since fifth grade and it’s been a long road to get to where she is today.

“I’ve been through blood, sweat, and tears…and throw-up. It’s been pretty rough but it’s what got me here today,” said Ward.

Ward is looking forward to the whole college experience and is thankful for her parents and coach’s support through her high school career.

“My mom and my coaches were the big two pieces behind the scenes. All I had to do was show up to the visits and run on the track,” said Ward. “It feels good being able to go to college and get a free education while staying fit during the process.”