As North Polk students and community members watch more and more of our high school athletes commit themselves to a college to continue their careers as student-athletes, some younger audiences watching may be wondering “how do I get there?”
North Polk senior, Greta Dillinger, has committed countless hours to North Polk’s girl’s basketball program and her work has greatly paid off. After going through a long and tiring recruiting process, Dillinger has signed herself to South Dakota’s Augustana University to play basketball. Within this article, Dillinger will share more about this process and advice for those who might want to do the same.
“I have always wanted to play for a collegiate team. Ever since I started playing basketball, I have loved every aspect of the game and everything around it. My dad encouraged me to play at the next level since I was young,” described Dillinger.
Due to having such big aspirations at a young age, Dillinger had to put a lot of work into her sport to succeed in her goals. Dillinger’s effort in building her confidence, leadership and skill within the game made all the difference in the recruiting process.
“Playing with my [Amateur Athletic Union] AAU team helped me a lot with my confidence. I was surrounded by coaches and teammates that believed in me and it showed on the court. I would not be where I am today skills wise without them. As for past high school seasons, there have been so many great leaders before me to help guide me through the past basketball seasons. They have taught me great leadership skills that I can utilize as a player,” expressed Dillinger.
After being taught so much by so many different people Dillinger was able to start her recruiting process putting her best first forward.
“The recruiting process is a very long procedure. A few coaches started reaching out my sophomore year about coming to play basketball for their team. I would get on phone calls and talk to the coaching staff and we would get to know each other. This would then lead to going on college visits to different colleges to see if I could see myself going there,” Dillinger explained.
Finally, after the long process and understanding all of her options, Dillinger was able to make her choice.
Dillinger stated, “[a]fter many visits and phone calls [she] met the Augustana University coaches and players. [She] went on a visit to Sioux Falls and instantly loved it. While [she] was there, they offered [her] a full-ride scholarship to play for their team. A few days later [she] accepted the offer and verbally said [she] would stop the recruiting process. A few months later, [she] signed my National Letter of Intent which formally bided [her] with the full-ride scholarship. [She] was only able to sign this months later because the NCAA has certain rules and deadlines saying when athletes are allowed to sign.”
After being able to sign, a weight was lifted off of Dillinger’s shoulders. While different colleges may have different opportunities some factors in this decision may be weighed more importantly than others, for Dillinger that meant finding a place that felt like home.
Dillinger divulged, “[t]he day [she] visited Augustana University, [she] felt like [she] was meant to be there. The coaching staff is very supportive and shares similar goals with [her].”
The journey to get to this point in Dillinger’s career may be difficult to navigate if you do not know what steps to take and what mindset to be in.
Dillinger advised athletes who may want to play in college, “not compare [one]self to others when going through the recruiting process. It is so easy to see when others are going on visits or getting offers but [one] can only control what you can control. So do not let the outside noise get to you and just have fun.”
Now having gone through the process there is a lot to look forward to in her collegiate career as an athlete.
Dillinger described, “[she] [is] most excited to meet new people. High school can feel like a bubble sometimes and [she] think[s] learning about the different experiences and lives people have lived will be fun.”
As for right now, Dillinger is staying focused on completing her high school basketball career and completing it as a state champion.
“I am hoping this season we come out as state champions. We have all the right assets to do it and I think we have a really good chance of doing it,” voiced Dillinger.
Dillinger’s final remark of the interview ended on a positive note with enthusiasm regarding the present and future of her basketball career.
“Go Comets! Go Vikings!” Dillinger exclaimed.
