Texas State Celebrates National Girls & Women in Sports Day

On National Girls & Women in Sports Day, some of our student-athletes talk about their inspirations in sport and women who made an impact on their careers.

By Megan Webb

February 7th is National Girls and Women in Sports Day. Started by the Women’s Sport Foundation, the day is an opportunity to honor and celebrate the accomplishments of female athletes, coaches, and administrators in women’s sports nationwide.

Texas State has eight women’s teams with over 150 student athletes on them, all with their own inspirations and reasons for why they love their sport.

For eight student athletes, Jaqueline Schnabel, Sierra Dickson, Kerrington Johnson, Alexia Tiscareno Macias, Ryann Torres, Sara Vanderford, Kennley Bradley and Haley Jones, those reasons come from their family, friends, teammates and some professional idols.

Jaqueline Schnabel | Tennis

For sophomore tennis player Jacqueline Schnabel, playing college sports was essentially in her blood. Schnabel’s mother played basketball at Concordia and her cousins, Brooke and Bailey Holle, are Texas State women’s basketball alum. She was raised in a family of athletes who inspired her every day as she accomplished her goal of becoming a college athlete.

“[My mother inspired me] from an early age,” she said. “She showed me how to be a strong, athletic women and I knew I wanted to follow in her footsteps someday.”

Growing up in a family of athletes inspired her to become one herself. For Schnabel, being a female athlete is empowering. She knows her sport has not only taught her invaluable life lessons, but has shown her that if she wants something she is capable of going and getting it all on her own. For her, being a woman in sports has been, “nothing short of amazing.”

Sierra Dickson | Basketball

For Texas State women’s basketball’s senior guard Sierra Dickson, her dad and her coaches inspired her to get into basketball. She had been playing pretty much every sport under the sun, from basketball to soccer and even gymnastics, but it was her dad that pushed her to take it to the next level.

From there, she was introduced to some coaches that changed her life and inspired her to pursue the Division 1 level. From her AAU coaches to her high school coaches, and even Texas State assistant coach Paige Love who recruited her, her coaches made the difference.

“I’ve had a lot of great coaches,” she said. “Growing up with great coaches, I was pushed to have success. They believed in me. My high school coach especially was a big influence on me. In my early years of high school, I didn’t have a lot of offers and she helped me with that and really pushed me and motivated me that I could play in college. She was a big influence for me.”

Being surrounded by other women in sport is a lot of the reason that Dickson ended up becoming a Bobcat and playing at the Division 1 level in college, now finishing her undergrad and anticipating starting a master’s degree.

Kerrington Johnson | Track

For Kerrington Johnson, being a woman in sports at Texas State is about more than just being a woman in sports, but a person of color too. For her, being a female athlete of color means competing to the highest standard and having endless strength and perseverance, while being an example for people who come after her.

“Being a woman in sports means taking full advantage of the opportunity” she said. “And being a role model for other young women who might aspire to be college athletes themselves.”

Johnson’s sister was a big inspiration for her in her life and pushed her into joining her high school track team. Her sister wasn’t just an athlete either, she had a slew of other accolades that showed Johnson the importance of being well-rounded and how to excel in the classroom, in her sport and in life with grace and humility.

Alexia Tiscareno Macias | Cross Country

Freshman cross country athlete Alexia Tiscareno Macias was inspired by her teammates and family throughout her career. For her, the friendships she’s made because of being a woman in sports are invaluable. Since she transitioned into college one of her favorite parts was the immediate friendship she made with her teammates.

“When you are a woman in sports you always have a safe space with the other athletes who happen to be women,” she said. “My closest friends when I went to college are the women that I met on my team.”

Despite being a female athlete, it was Macias’ brother who got her to start running. The two have a three-year age gap and when her older brother had decided to start running, she followed in his footsteps and with his support became a Division 1 cross country runner.

Ryann Torres | Volleyball

Ryann Torres is a senior with Texas State volleyball, she has been playing volleyball since she was five years old, all inspired by her mother. As the starting setter for Texas State volleyball throughout their 2023 season that saw them make the NCAA tournament, her mother and entire family’s support played a big role in her success in college.

Because of the support she got from her family, she was empowered to become the athlete and person she is today.

“It’s important to be a female athlete because we can showcase our strengths and individual characteristics through the sport that we play,” she said.

Sara Vanderford | Softball

5th year third basemen for Texas State softball Sara Vanderford, she grew up with women around her. From her two sisters, to her mom, and all the teammates she had around her. But one person came into her life and inspired a lot of her softball career: Caitlin Plocheck.

Plocheck was the first softball player Vanderford knew, and she took Vanderford under her wing from day one and has been a support system for the entirety of her career.

“She’s always showed up in my life and just been there for me,” she said. “When things get hard she’s the first person I call, even now. Through high school, through college, she’s just been a constant. No matter what, no matter when, she was going to pick up the phone, even when she was in Nashville, Tennessee.”

That bond has been a consistent part of Vanderford’s life and has pushed her to become the best version of herself now, even as she enters her final season as a Bobcat.

Kennley Bradley | Soccer

Senior center back for Texas State soccer Kennley Bradley grew up in and around her sport. Her mom and sister had played and growing up, her mom was her inspiration to get into the game. The two were constantly watching soccer and talking about the game and exposing her to the professional female athletes in her sport. This showed her early on how empowering being a female athlete can be.

“It was a family thing,” she said. “My mom played, my sister played and now I play.”

Outside of her family, though, Bradley was inspired by former US Women’s National team player Julie Ertz. Early on in her career, Ertz played center back just like Bradley does. She grew up watching Ertz play and took a lot of the things she would do in-game and applied it to her own style.

“It was just so fun to be able to have a person to watch and know that’s how I wanted to play,” she said. “Whenever she would slide tackle or score a goal it was like, ‘I want to do that.’ My very very first inspiration was my mom and my sister, but [Ertz] was a big one too.”

Hailey Jones | Golf

Graduate student golfer Hailey Jones has been watching professional golfer Lexi Thompson since she was just 10 years old. For her, Thompson was a big inspiration in her own golf career because she was so young when she became a professional. Thomspon won her first professional event at just 16 years old.

“When I was younger, I would play in the older divisions,” Jones said. “[Thompson] taught me that age did not matter and that I could compete with the older girls if I worked hard.”

Thompson wasn’t just a role model of hard work at a young age, though. She taught Jones the importance of setting high goals for herself and the importance of being dedicated to what you do and kind to everyone around her.

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