This weeks athlete interview features Makayla Binter. Makayla Binter is a former member of the track and field team at Davidson College. She competed in a variety of events such as heptathlon, pentathlon, and long jump. At Davidson, Makayla set two new program records in the heptathlon and one in the long jump. Makayla's hard work in track and field paid off as she earned the Most Valuable Field award for the 2017-2018 season. Continue reading this athlete interview to hear what this track and field star has to say about the recruiting process.

1. What is the best piece of advice that you can offer to high school athletes who are looking to play at the collegiate level? 

Make sure to train over the summer and do the regiments that they send to you, or make sure you are doing something. The workouts are a lot different (and harder) than in high school, so it is important to do them so that you are not dying during pre-season.

2. When transitioning from high school sports to college, what was the most significant difference?

The biggest difference was the workload. AP tests and classes did not prepare me for the workload I would receive at Davidson, and that is fine, but I wish I had known better coming in. This would have helped my ability to plan and manage my time more effectively and be prepared for that workload during the season.

3. What do you wish you knew before you started the recruiting process?

I wish I knew how the process worked more effectively, as in how to go about figuring out official and unofficial visits, making sure that I knew the NCAA rules and regulations behind communicating with a coach and the things I would have to fill out for discounts (which come with getting money off on your AP tests, SAT/ACT testing, and fee waivers).

4. How many overnight visits did you go on? Did you know right away what college you wanted to play for, and if so, what was the wow factor? 

I went on three overnight visits, one of them not an official visit and it was at Davidson. I knew after my three days on campus that I wanted to go to Davidson because of the people I met on campus and at the visit. My thinking was if Davidson let in students like this and wanted students like this to attend their school, then I wanted to be there too.

5. What was the most challenging thing you experienced while you were getting recruited?

The most challenging thing was remembering to answer the emails of coaches and keeping in constant contact. I only used my email at that point for getting discounts and coupons at stores, so I did not use it heavily for communicative purposes. I realized that I needed to make sure I stayed relevant in their recruiting process because these coaches were not just talking to me and had many other athletes interested in their schools.

6. Does your school have support for the athletes who might be struggling with academics?

Davidson has options for students that are struggling with academics in general with our Teaching and Learning Center in the library, which has a paid student tutor for most of the intro classes and others for students to go and talk to them about what they are struggling with in a class. Some teams have a mandatory study hall for first-year students.

7. What coach in your life gave you the best advice, and what was it?

My assistant varsity soccer coach my senior year who told me that the next four years would be a tremendous developmental process all around, mentally, physically, emotionally, and even spiritually. With that being said, she told me that if I was going to go somewhere, then I should do it for my own growth and not think about the people I am leaving behind because yes, it is sad, but what will I do with myself if I hold back? That gave me a lot of courage to ignore the people giving me slack for wanting to go to college out of state.

8. Knowing how coaches can help to carve an athlete's path when it comes to their sport and what direction they should go into, what coach inspired you the most?

My varsity track coach set me up to be a great athlete and inspired me to reach higher. He was the one who reinforced to me that I belonged at Davidson and could compete at the Division I level even if I didn't think I could. I was happy to have worked with him throughout my junior and senior years. It helped me get where I am today.

9. How can playing a college sport help an athlete in the future? 

I think it made me more prepared for college in that I was closer to doing “adult things” like constantly filling out paperwork, making sure I checked my email, and applying for more things than just the actual school. 

Image Credit: Davidson College Athletics