Not every sport is deemed a contact sport, but yet the tallest, strongest players always seem to psychologically  effect the opposing team. Intimidation plays a factor in every sport, no matter what age.

Sometime before the whistle blows, it’s a given that every player will scope out their competition, whether it’s stats, tapes of old games, or even just a quick glance over during warm ups.

From this point of view, physical advantages seem like a blessing.

As a young kid, I was always a head taller than the majority of the girls in my league. I didn’t mind being known as “the tall girl” because I knew it got into my opponents heads. Unfortunately it also got to my head.

It wasn’t that I thought I was the best player on the field, it was that I knew i could get away with more by using my size. It was engraved in my head that I didn’t have to work as hard because I will always have a leg up.

To my surprise, I stopped growing in fifth grade. By middle school girls started to catch up and my fire began to fade. The smaller players developed a much harder work ethic to compete with the bigger players. Work ethic is developed at a very young age, and it is nearly impossible to change this habitual component. As the smaller kids began to catch up to me naturally my dominance on the field slowly faded away.

My advantage became my worst nightmare. The fight against myself was one that would last a lifetime.