A Word From Badger Marissa Sarkesian
October 30, 2007 | Women's Soccer
With just one regular-season Big Ten game remaining on the 2007 schedule, senior Marissa Sarkesian shares a behind-the-scenes look at what satisfaction in life means to her.
Sarkesian, nicknamed 'Sark', is an English major at the UW who grew up in Canton, Mich., with two brothers and a sister. To begin her collegiate soccer career, the midfielder initially attended Texas A&M, but transferred to Wisconsin after two seasons. In three full seasons, Sark has tallied fourteen points off five goals and four assists. The senior has started all 17 games for the Badgers this year, tallying one goal and three assists so far.
October 30, 2007
There are few moments in life where you can look back and feel completely satisfied with your performance or decisions. Whether we remember a good or bad experience, there is always something that we wish we could change and make better. There is always at least one small haunting detail that makes us question, 'What if'' 'What if I had chose the other path'' 'What if I had given it a little more effort'' 'What if I had done this or that ''
With my college soccer career quickly coming to its end, I find myself at a moment of such contemplation. Am I satisfied' I came to Wisconsin last year as a junior after deciding to transfer my sophomore year of college. The decision to leave my previous school was the hardest decision I have yet to make. I could have chosen the easy path and stayed. I could have chosen the easy path and transferred to a familiar school near home. However, I took a chance. I took a chance on a school that I fell in love with at first sight. Now, in my second and final year at the University of Wisconsin, the question arises, 'Am I satisfied with my decision''
I would be lying if I said everything has been perfect. There have certainly been hard times that made me waver and feel uncertain. I have had my fair share of frustration and disappointment. Nevertheless, when I look back on all of the amazing gifts this school has given me, I can undoubtedly say that I would never change my decision. I am completely satisfied.
I could not ask for more in an education, and as far as I am concerned, Madison is the best college campus in the whole country. Every time I stroll down State Street, hike up Bascom, or simply enjoy a nice afternoon at the terrace, I cannot help but think, 'I love my school.' Everything you could ever want in a college is embodied at Wisconsin. It is the perfect combination of elite academics, a beautiful campus, an awesome, exciting town, tremendous athletics, and above all, an amazing, faithful group of Badger fans and supporters.
My two seasons of competing as a Badger have been everything I could have ever hoped to experience. Yes, we have struggled at times and have fallen short of many of our goals and aspirations. However, every moment of hardship is lost in the glare of the countless memories of pure enjoyment and satisfaction, and not one of these memories could exist without my incredible teammates.
Teammates are what make everything worthwhile. Every win would be unsatisfying and every loss would be meaningless without the ability to share in the emotions of your teammates. They are not only the individuals you trust to recover for your missed tackles or to keep you running for a full 90 minutes on game day, but they are also the individuals you seek for advice and support off of the field. I have been blessed with amazing teammates that will become lifelong friends.
This season, together as a team, as one unit, we have battled. We have fought through a grueling preseason, celebrated victories, agonized in our defeat, shed tears in frustration, laughed in absolute enjoyment, struggled through fitness and training, endured innumerable hours of bus rides, made many sacrifices in the name of soccer, and have put our heart and soles on the line every time we set foot on the field. We have done all of this as a team. With our last regular season game looming in the near future, I ask, 'Are we satisfied'' Can we walk away from this season satisfied with our effort and experience'
One game remains. Who know what the future holds' Who knows if the pieces will fall into place and we will receive a berth at postseason play' There is only one thing we can control: our effort in this last game. We must put ourselves out there. We must leave every last ounce of energy on that field. We must battle like there is no tomorrow. And, if we happen to go down, at least we can say we went down fighting. Then, despite any of the outcomes of previous games or this season's record, we can truly be satisfied with who we are and what we have accomplished.
