Aug. 18, 2008
ORLANDO, Fla. (www.ucfathletics.com) - Where can hard work and determination get you? Just ask Jenny Heppert. One of only two seniors on this year's volleyball squad, the middle blocker is not only among the best in Conference USA, but she is also a biology major securing the same distinction at UCF. Heppert was named to the ESPN The Magazine Academic All-District III First Team and the C-USA All-Academic Team last seasonfor maintaining a remarkable 4.0 cumulative grade-point average and for her team-leading performance on the court.
When it comes to balancing the parallels of being a Division I athlete and an honors student at a major university, the Lawrence, Kan., native seems to perform the tasks almost flawlessly, devoting time and energy equally amongst her passions.
"Volleyball and school compliment each other in my life," Heppert said. "So, when I am not on the court I am studying, and when I am not studying I am on the court. They are pretty much numbers 1 and 2 in my life and what I devote the majority of my time to, especially in the fall."
But all of this hard work is for a grander milestone in Heppert's life; a gateway into the real world.
"My long-term career goal is to either go to medical school or graduate school," the senior said. "I really want to use whatever degree I earn to help people, the environment and do something to heal the world. To be perfectly honest, I am not really sure what I want to do after graduation."
Despite embarking on a journey into the unknown, Heppert does know that whatever her career goals may be, volleyball has helped her collect the tools she needs to build a life outside the university.
Heppert's already attained national accolades that can attest to her competitive spirit in both aspects of her life. But what is she looking to accomplish as she enters her final season as a Knight and the home-stretch of her academic career?
"Academically, I hope to maintain my grade-point average and do everything that I can on that front," Heppert said. "I am very fortunate to get any honors that come my way from doing that, but I am just going to try and do the best that I can in my classes.
"Athletically, I would love to be in the starting lineup and be on the court to support my teammates. I think that we can do great things," Heppert stated. "We have some competitive matches in our pre-conference schedule, so we really want to get on some of those teams and see if we can get some wins there. Hopefully, with all our hard work leading up to the conference tournament we could see post-season play. That is the goal. I know it is a lofty one for this year, but I think that we can do it and we are definitely excited to try."
Her competitive spirit and positive outlook on the future can only serve as inspiration to not only her own teammates, but student-athletes everywhere that seem to struggle where she excels.
"[I] really look at it as a competition," Heppert offers. "It is all about preparation and discipline, doing repetitions over and over and really putting in the time and effort, just like you do on the court. It is an extremely straight-forward parallel, I think, between the two. One may be more fun that the other, but like they say, how many athletes are actually going to go on and play professionally and be successful at it? The number is very small compared to the number of student-athletes that are going to go off into real professions. You always have to keep in the back of your mind that the work you are putting into the classroom is actually going to pay back to you hundreds of times over when you get a job in the real world."
Her hard work since arriving at UCF has gotten her numerous awards on and off the court, but most importantly, it has given her a plethora of directions to take in the journey into the rest of her life.
- Sarah Tarasewicz