By Samantha Seiders
Across the court, passion has been used to define our community award winner; Passion for her sport, her teammates, and passion for her education.
Our community award winner is team captain. Leading by example, she averaged a double-double every game qualifying herself for 1st Team All-Conference, Pacific Coast Athletic Conference Player of the Year - Runner Up, and Athlete of the Week in 2017. Her love of sport is contagious.
She extended her passion to her teammates, challenging them to work harder on and off the court. After motivating them in practice, she often cared for her teammates as a volunteer in the athletic training room and assisted them with their class essays and assignments. Together they volunteer with Hashtag Lunch Bag, to distribute food to the homeless each month. Our community winner is the first to arrive and the last to leave, especially when helping coach Iglehart prepare, keep score, and cleanup at various basketball events. Teammates agree that her dedication to our program is passionate.
Having completed 69 units with a cumulative GPA of 4.0, our community award winner is headed to San Diego State University in the fall for athletic training. In the words of Coach Iglehart, "Leah is an all-around stud."
Please congratulate Leah Veleker as San Diego Mesa's Community Athlete.