After a restful winter break, students are back on Bishop Gorman campus, and as classes and sports start up again, student-athlete pressures are back in full swing.
For varsity volleyball player Trinity Thompson ‘26, balancing intense academics with elite athletics is nothing new. Throughout all four years of high school, Thompson has challenged herself in honors and AP courses while earning national recognition in volleyball, giving her valuable insight and advice for students facing the same demanding balancing act.
High school presents challenges for every student, from academic rigor to social responsibilities. For student-athletes, those pressures are often amplified. Thompson has truly embraced it all, taking on a course load full of Bishop Gorman’s most challenging classes, excelling on the varsity volleyball team and committing to the University of Pittsburgh, while still maintaining friendships. However, these commitments don’t come without compromises.
Thompson admits that her social life has been affected the most. “I miss things like prom or social outings, homecoming…and I think it’s just the sacrifice that you have to make depending on how much love you have for the sport,” she said.
To help limit these sacrifices, Thompson advises student-athletes to take things one step at a time, while keeping academics as a top priority. “Take one thing at a time but prioritize school mostly,” she said.
She also emphasized the importance of focusing on what is within one’s control. “If you start to get overwhelmed, it’s most likely because you’re thinking about things that you can’t control, or a lot of external factors,” Thompson continues, “don’t put so much stress on the uncontrollable, because the only thing that is in your control is the things that you do.”
One phrase Thompson encourages others to live by is “trust the process.”Thompson expresses that “I think you have to fall in love with the process, because you’re not going to get instant gratification and I think that’s the biggest struggle with student athletes today.”
Despite the challenges, Thompson acknowledges that perseverance is key. “The grind never stops,” she said, “but you need to find internal motivation, because eventually external motivations are not going to be there for you.”
For students striving to elevate their performance, Thompson believes passion is the defining factor. “What separates good from great is how much you care about what you do and how much you love what you do.”
By applying Thompson’s advice from balancing priorities to staying mentally motivated, student-athletes can continue to grow both academically and athletically while navigating the demanding realities of high school.