Most athletes aim for success, awards and fame. They dream of bathing in the accolades that come with being a sports star. But ask Patricia Soman whether she'd take four medals or a 4.0, and she'd take the grade point average.
Soman, from Arlington, Va., and a senior on the women's track and field squad, has been blessed with the best of both fields. She was given a full academic scholarship to attend Ball State and has focused her entire college career on excelling in the books more than on the field.
"I put a lot more emphasis on school than on track," Soman said, "because I have to remember the reason I came to Ball State, which was for academics. So that's always my number one priority."
Sue Parks, head coach of the women's track team, said there is no doubt what comes first for Soman.
"She's definitely a student before she's an athlete," Parks said. "School comes first to her, which is the way it should be."
As an accounting major, Soman has worked on a 3.82 GPA while continuing to come up big for Ball State in competition. She most recently advanced to the NCAA championships in Sacramento by making school records in the long and triple jumps, taking second place in both events of the NCAA Mideast Regionals last weekend. She won the same events in the MAC Outdoor Championships a few weeks ago.
Parks has seen students come and go, but has noticed the dedication Soman exerts to sustaining her grades while keeping track going. Soman said the task has been a learning process.
"It's definitely hard, but it's not impossible," Soman said. "Time management is so important. It just teaches you a lot about motivation, having your focus straight and knowing the things that are important to you because it's very easy to go astray. But as you go along you learn what it is you have to do to maintain your grades and to do well on the field. It's an ongoing learning experience."
Soman only took on track to have a release from school work, entering as a walk-on. Because her purpose of being at Ball State was academic, she had to persuade her parents she could keep her grades steady while doing track simultaneously.
"In my family, education comes first all the time," she said, "but if I can prove I can manage both then they'll just support me and be there. They basically let me do what I want to do as long as I can keep my grades up, too."
The accomplishments keep piling up for her in both realms and while she has yet to sit back and reflect on what has been by no means a small collegiate career, she knows exactly how she wants her legacy to stand.
"Obviously you want to be remembered for your accomplishments," Soman said, "but I also want my academic part to come out. I don't just want to be labeled as track athlete because for me it cheapens you as a whole person."
Soman has a bright future ahead of her. The only problem is deciding what her future will be. The prospect of being a professional athlete is very likely for her, but her an accounting career is the first thing she encounters when envisioning her future. She said she would like to remain in athletics, but nothing is written in stone.
"Right now, I don't know what my plans are," Soman said. "I'm just going to take the summer off, go home and try to figure out what it is exactly I'm going to do. I'm not going to jump into going pro just yet. But after the summer hopefully I'll know what I'm doing.
"I hope to still be an athlete. At what level I don't know. I'd like to be an Olympian, but I see my career first."
Parks looks back on Soman's career and sees an abundance of possibilities as well, understanding that Soman sees track as a side note to college. However, she is convinced that Soman will take an extended journey into track.
"She's starting to see what she's capable of," Parks said. "If she does well in the national championships, she might be inspired to continue on, but she's got another life besides track. It is certainly important to her. She enjoys it, and she's very good at it, but she also has other things in her life. I see her continuing on one more year into the Olympics, but it all depends on how she does in this meet."
Soman was named to the 2003 Verizon District V Academic First Team for track to go along with being named the Most Valuable Performer for the 2003 MAC Outdoor championships. The success in both mirrors one another and Soman is amazed by it all.
"I haven't really sat back and thought of all the accomplishments yet because I'm still going full force in it," she said. "I'm amazed when I look at it that I could do what I'm doing. I'd never imagined just with the injuries and other stuff I had to overcome. But I'm amazed and very thankful for what I've been able to do."
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