A Positive Outlook
Having played since she was three, sophomore Mikayla Chase’s passion for sports is evident. Mikayla identifies soccer and sports as instrumental in how she goes about her life as a student and an individual. Ultimately, being an athlete has helped her develop the right skills and mindset to succeed even off the field.
“The drive and passion that I get from sports have really helped me open up, to be able to talk to other people, build relationship skills, and learn lessons that will help me on and off the field. I feel that a lot of lessons you learn in sports can be applied to the real world.”
Growing up, Mikayla credits her parents as a significant influence on her approach to sports and life and general. They have each taught her what it means to be a hard worker and to have a positive outlook. Being shy as a child, Mikayla says that these lessons each of her parents taught her have helped her grow into the person she is today and how she handles herself both as a teammate and a student.
“My mom was super hard working. She had a family at a really young age and was constantly working to better her life and her family’s life. She has always had this blue-collar mentality where you have to work for what you want, and you can never give up, and she has always taught me those life lessons. And my dad was always just a funny person to be around. I was always so shy as a kid, but seeing him always interacting with people, making people laugh, is where I feel I get my positive and uplifting personality now.”
Coming to Midland, Mikayla has grown further in her passion for sports, not just through her participation in soccer but also in the classroom. Pursuing an athletic training degree, Mikayla desires to continue to be around sports even after graduation.
“I have been around sports my whole life, and that has had an impact on my desire to be able to still be around sports when I am done and be able to help other athletes with things like injuries. I have always been around the medical field, my mom is a nurse, and my two older sisters are nurses, and that has also been an impact.”
In addition to her athletic training, Mikayla is also an advocate for mental health. As an athletic trainer, she wants to make sure she is supporting athletes in their physical health and mental health as well. Mikayla shares that suicide was a frequent and tragic presence on her teams growing up, and her desire to make mental health a more common discussion amongst athletes stems from that experience.
“I want to bring that mental health aspect to athletic training in any way I can. I think it is important because I know that sports can be draining and high pressure, but it really should be a place for young athletes to be able to escape from an outside problem and make it a place to work through it with support from others.”
Whether it be as a teammate, a student, a peer, or her future as an athletic trainer, Mikayla wants to continue to be a positive presence in people’s life. She encourages people to engage in positivity and kindness, and in doing so, tries to make some feel just a little bit better. You never know the type of impact you can make on a person. To her, this is what having a Warrior spirit is all about.
“Being kind and being positive to anyone, even if it is for a brief second and you don’t even know them, can really have a big, positive impact on them. I think being a Warrior is just constantly being uplifting, kind, and positive. Just trying to make a change and make someone’s day a little bit better.”
Mikayla Chase is a sophomore athletic training major from Albuquerque, NM. To share your story or nominate a friend, email social@midlandu.edu or post using #FacesofMidland.
