Senior Stephanie Yi was awarded with Athlete of the Week for the week of February 18.

Yi has been playing soccer in middle school, about five years ago. She has played for McIntosh since her freshman year. She began as field player for JV and then went on to spend her sophomore, junior, and now senior year as the varsity teams goalkeeper.

“Transitioning from a field player to a goalkeeper was really hard,” said Yi. “However, it taught me patience and to have more respect for goalkeepers and the game itself.”

Varsity girls coach, Casey Kreitner, described Yi as a vital member of the team. “As goalkeeper and captain, she is a strong presence on and off the field,” said Kreitner. “She has a positive attitude and is truly dedicated to her training and the team.”

One of Yi’s highlights of playing for the Chiefs has been the coaching staff. “Throughout the past four years, I like how everyone on the McIntosh coaching staff is close and friendly,” said Yi. “They help every player that plays, no matter what team you play for.”

Although she had the support of the coaching staff, Yi said that her sophomore year was her setback time. “I wasn’t playing a lot, which devastated me,” said Yi. “However, I learned to be more patient and to be more open with my teammates and coaches.”

Yi expressed she will mostly miss the team bonding events. Such as the sleepovers and team dinners.

“From building new relationships to learning how to be patient,” said Yi. “Everything that soccer teaches me is automatically implemented into my life.”

Yi believes soccer has made her more open with the people around her, which has led her to overall helped her with “building new and strong relationships.”

Yi plans on attending the University of Georgia next year to major in biology. She also plans to play for the universities club soccer team because Yi said soccer “brings out the best in me both as a player and a person.”