Alicia Cordova, who is #2 on the court, gets ready for her teammate to set the ball up for her. As the ball goes up, Alicia begins running towards it, jumps, and spikes the ball, scoring another point for the Agua Fria Lady Owls volleyball team.

Described as a very bright and reliable person, Alicia arrived here at Agua Fria as a freshman from a private school, knowing little to no one. Fast forward to now, Alicia’s senior year, and she has become senior class vice-president, and captain of the indoor and outdoor volleyball team.

By becoming very involved with the school, it taught Alicia how to become more responsible. Unfortunately, sometimes Alicia mentioned that being so involved with the school did lead to her being overwhelmed at times, but overall it was worth it and very fun.

Although she does enjoy being involved, she’s ready to leave all this behind. She described this as a bittersweet moment but ultimately, she’s ready to “start a new chapter in my life and be involved in college too, but to a certain extent,” she said. She plans to major in nursing in college.

Alicia mentioned that someone who has impacted her life is Coach Jamie Mauritz, who she met in her freshman year of playing volleyball. Alicia said she can rely on her coach for anything and that she is her biggest role model.

Olivia Wotherspoon, Alicia’s best friend, described her abilities as a volleyball player. “If Alicia has the ball, you know she’s going to score,” Olivia said. I even got chills. 

Olivia mentioned that at first, when they first met, they didn’t quite get along, but when introduced to each other through a mutual friend, they clicked and connected instantly. Since then they have been inseparable.

Olivia described Alicia as “super outgoing, funniest person I know, never a dull moment with her.” Even when she’s having a rough day, she still manages to make Olivia smile. 

“Four years isn’t a super long time, but I feel like we’ve been through a lot together,” Olivia said. “She’s seen me at my worst, I’ve seen her at her worst…it feels like we grew up together.” Olivia said this is why she calls Alicia her best friend, along with describing her as a trustworthy, reliable, and helpful friend.

Olivia also added that by simply just being friends with Alicia, it helped Olivia embrace herself, gain confidence, and become a more extroverted person, so much that Olivia joined student council and will also be saying a speech at graduation, along with Alicia. 

When asked if Alicia and her would remain friends, Olivia said, “Yes, we’re still gonna be good friends, we just won’t see each other as much… but the friendship and bond will still be there.”

Coach Mauritz may just be a coach, but in reality for Alicia, she means so much more. Alicia made the varsity volleyball team her freshman year, which stuck out to Coach Mauritz. 

Fast forward to now, Alicia said, “Coach Mauritz helped me a lot, she’s helped me when I was at some of my lowest points, I can rely on her for anything.”

Coach Mauritz said, “Alicia has always been very talented and a very bright person, even when we were losing she would always keep high spirits, along with trying to make the experience of being on the volleyball team positive. Even if she was in a bad mood, she would still make sure others were okay.” 

Coach Mauritz added: “Alicia has always been a leader. She always had to lead the team even during rough seasons.” No matter what team they were playing against, winning or losing, Alicia always tried her hardest, and encouraged the rest of the girls to do the same.

Coach Mauritz described Alicia as always putting others before herself, a very determined person, and also making sure the rest of the girls in the program have fun. 

“I could always count on her, for her to be there, lifting others up,” Coach Mauritz said. “She’s a special kid.” 

Coach Maurtiz also called Alicia a natural leader. She said that Alicia made a difference at this school and will definitely be missed by many. Alicia will also miss her coach.

“I will miss her a lot,” Alicia said. “I’m going to text her like every day and I hope we can have picnics together.”

Overall, Alicia is a very bright person. People enjoy being around her and she was a very fun person to write about. I hope for a bright future for her, and for others to be able to meet her and see what a great person she is, and for the rest of her graduating class to also make their dreams come true and enjoy life.