In the fast-paced world of collegiate athletics, a change in direction is often the ultimate test of resilience.
For Angie Mainiero ’25 of Vineland, N.J., an MBA graduate student, that pivot came when she traded 15 years of soccer history for a tennis racket and a completely new set of goals.
“After playing soccer for more than 15 years with the goal of playing at the collegiate level, I never would’ve expected to leave the sport after my first year at the Mount,” Mainiero noted. “Even more unexpected was the decision to join tennis at age 19, with zero prior experience.”
Beyond the physical demands of the court, Mainiero credits the transition with sharpening her professional toolkit, including time management and mental resilience.
“The most valuable lesson I learned was to pursue interests and opportunities when given the chance,” Mainiero said. “I just as easily could’ve said, ‘I never played tennis before, so why would a college team ever let me play?’ However, if I had let this deter me, I would never have learned that the team needed athletes and that the coach was open to teaching new players.”
As her time at the Mount draws to a close, Mainiero is leveraging this mentality to prepare for the regional workforce, proving that the most successful Knights are those who refuse to dismiss new ideas without careful consideration.
“Worst case scenario, you don’t like it and you are as you were before,” she concluded. “And best-case scenario, you end up learning and enjoying something new.”
Stepping onto the court with zero experience may have been a gamble, but for Mainiero, the payoff was clear: a new favorite sport, a fresh team, and the hard-won proof that the best outcomes are often found in the seasons we never expected.