This is the fourth in a series of Prep Talk Graduation '09 blogs featuring area WIAA Scholar-Athletes and the essays they wrote as part of the consideration process for the WIAA's highest academic award.

ALEXANDRA LAKE, Madison Edgewood

Sports: Girls golf (9, 10, 11, 12); Girls Basketball (10, 11, 12).

GPA: 4.0.

Class Rank: 5th of 177.

Other extra-curricular activities: National Honor Society, Studen Council, WIAAA Solo Ensemble, Math Team, Link Crew, Fellowship of Christian Athletes, Amnesty International, Students Against Driving Drunk, Rotary Ethics Participant.

Civic & community activities: Completed over 300 service hours during her four years at Edgewood High School. Most of these hours were spent teaching Sunday School.

ESSAY

I have participated in athletics almost my entire life. As I grew, so did my skill level, competitors, and level of competition. However, over the years, the one thing that has always remained the same is the set of values that athletics have instilled in me. Through my participation in athletics, I have been deeply rooted in the values of hard work, dedication, commitment, sacrfice, teamwork and integrity. One of the most important values that I have learned from athletics is hard work. Whether it was staying after practice to shoot extra free throws, or practicing putting in the dark, sports have taught me to appreciate the satisfaction and pride that comes from hard work. Similarly, athletics have also taught me about dedication and sacrifice. There have been countless times when I have had to sacrfice a social opportunity with friends in order to spend more time practicing or get a good nights sleep before a tournament or game. While sometimes difficult at the time, making these sacrifices for my sport has taught me the importance of putting your goal first. In order to achieve a goal, you must be willing to put it above everything else. Finally, athletics have taught me about teamwork and commitment. As a member of four state championship golf teams, I have definitely learned a lot about what it takes to make a successful team. I will always remember the lessons that I have learned and I will take these values with me wherever I go. As I continue to grow and enter a new stage in my life, thanks to my participation in athletics, I have the confidence to face whatever lies ahead of me with an unbreakable platform of essential values.

-- Alexandra Lake, Madison Edgewood High School, Class of 2009