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This week, I am dropping my third podcast of the week, episode 22 of "Work Hard, Play Harder" with Minneota High School athlete Ireland Stassen.
Stassen is a senior coming off a championship season playing volleyball and currently is playing basketball. Stassen had decided not to pursue sports on the collegiate level and will be attending Southwest Minnesota State University in the fall.
She is the captain of the Minneota Vikings basketball team, which is 2-0 to start the season. This is an episode with a lot of laughs, surprise reactions and fun to talk to someone passionate about sports, family and being a leader of her team on and off the court.
The podcast is called "Work Hard, Play Harder" because that's how I like to live my life. It is about finding out your "why" and getting to know you beyond the occupation. The podcast is informative about what you do and asks fun questions. Building connections and being able to be relatable is an important aspect of my podcast as well.
In this podcast episode, Stassen talked about her "why" for playing sports. She also talked about why her uncle, Jackson Illies, who played college football, is the biggest role model in her life We also talked about her decision not to play sports in college and why she chose SMSU to attend in the fall.
"Well, I originally wanted to stay closer to home," Stassen said. "When I talked to the coaches of the other colleges and heard what they wanted me to do, it wasn't what I wanted to get out of the college experience. Since [the volleyball team] ended on a high note, it made the decision easier to not play in college. So that is where I'm at with it."
Stassen will continue to watch sports and supports her school as she has former teammates playing volleyball for SMSU. Stassen also talked about the impact her coaches Chad Johnston and Alan Panka (Basketball) along with Hayley Fruin (Volleyball) had on her, both on and off the court. We discussed mental health and how important it is as a captain to advocate for help if needed.
"That's one of the main things we have talked about this at the beginning of the season," Stassen said. "As a captain with volleyball and basketball, we preach and talk about if you're struggling with something, it is okay to talk about it. I always text and ask my teammates, 'how are you doing?' I know going into the [Russell-Tyler-Ruthton] game, that was the most pressure I have ever felt playing. Being in the gym kind of relaxes us, so that definitely helps it."
Stassen also talked about some fun interesting facts about herself. She said that she's never been to a concert and ranch is a staple for foods that she eats. We also discussed how we both are terrible at bowling.
Stassen completed her final season of volleyball by winning a championship and is in the middle of her final basketball season trying to achieve the same feat. She is a vibrant personality who plays with emotion and passion that can only be duplicated not surpassed. She is a true leader on and off the court who is poised beyond her years. Come out and support Stassen and the Minneota Vikings basketball team for the rest of the season.