Undergraduate / "going to the library everyday" - UNC- the best advice you've ever received or given [9]

Would anyone be willing to read this and give feedback? It is my first draft and I need some help! Thanks! :)

A few years ago, I had the opportunity to attend High Performance A1/A2 Camp in Greensboro, North Carolina. The camp is designed for elite players, some of the best in the state. Eventually players are selected from the camp to compete for Carolina Region in the annual High Performance Championship. We had to miles to the gym multiple times a day, and played for three hours three times a day. At the beginning of each session, the main coach, Blaine Tendler, would give us an inspirational quote. The one that most profoundly ...

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Another mile walk to the gym on a hot June day. Black squares and white tape composed the net; two 30 x 30 squares on the floor marked the boundaries of the volleyball court. Three hours, three times a day for five days. It was High Performance A1/A2 Training Camp, designed for elite players, some of the best in the state. At the start of each session, the head coach, Blaine Tendler, gave us an inspirational quote. The one that resonated with me most was "If you don't go all the way, why go at all?"

If you have never played volleyball, then you must not know how sore you are after playing for nine hours a day in a gym with no air conditioning. Each day gets harder, because more lactic acid has built up in your muscles. Our legs burned when climbing stairs and even sitting down became uncomfortable. Bruises covered our bodies. Red patches on our skin indicated floor burn. My high school coach once said that you're not a true volleyball player until you have bruised hipbones. Blaine's words reverberated in my head constantly. I chose to ignore the massive amounts of pain I was in and instead focus more on improving myself as a volleyball player. I ran everywhere, never walked, made sure my toes were exactly on the line when Blaine yelled "Corner up!" and if a ball hit the floor, I did too. When I was asked how I was feeling, I would smile and answer "Great!" even though I was dehydrated and felt as if I couldn't take another step. What I think Blaine meant was that you can't achieve the desired result if you don't push yourself as hard as you can all the time, no matter what you're doing. If you don't push yourself, you only hurt yourself by not reaching your full potential.

Blaine's words never left me even after the grueling camp was over. I carried over what I had learned that summer into the realm of academia. They say the first semester of college is the hardest one because no one knows what to expect. I mistakenly thought that what worked for me in high school would work in college as well. Simply put, I didn't exert as much effort as I could have and ultimately, did not achieve my goal of getting a 4.0. I stubbornly chose to ignore resources such as the Academic Resource Center and the library. It was only recently that I learned what it meant to "go all the way." Essentially, a perfectly good opportunity would be wasted if I didn't try harder. My college education was too good an opportunity to waste. I still haven't gotten the 4.0 that I want. Despite my failure to achieve my goal on numerous occasions, determination promises a 4.0 in the semesters to come. Achieving this goal will take more effort than I ever could have imagined which is why next semester I plan to hit the books harder because after all the books don't hit back.