FEATURED SENIOR ATHLETE: Saylor Carrell, North Putnam

Saylor is a senior at North Putnam and participates in three sports, volleyball, basketball and track.

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Banner Graphic: How important are sports to you, and what have you learned from them?

Saylor Carrell: “Sports are really important to me and my family, too. My dad grew up doing a bunch of sports. They’ve taught me a lot about being a person, working as a teammate with everyone, communicating effectively and a lot of other life skills.”

BG: Talk about your sports.

SC: “I’ve always been active in the community and doing sports along with that is about time management. I also get to hang out with my friends and have a good time. Our coaches also make things fun.”

BG: What’s the most embarrassing thing that has happened to you in sports?

SC: “I’ve tripped and fallen over several times in front of everyone.”

BG: What does your game day routine look like?

SC: “I eat a good breakfast before going to school, make sure all my school work is done and eat a solid lunch. I usually get in a lot of food after school from whoever brings it. I come into the gym, warmup and listen to music, which is a big part of things.”

BG: Do you have any favorite college/pro sports teams or athletes you follow?

SC: “I watched the National Championship for volleyball. Madisen Skinner from Texas is a good player I keep up with on Instagram.”

BG: Big classes are sometimes hard to keep together for several years in multiple sports. What has kept yourself and this group together as well as it has?

SC: “We’ve all been together since third grade, so being around each other has become normal for us. We do a good job of keeping issues off the court so that when we’re practicing or playing, we’re a big family. It doesn’t matter what’s going on outside the gym, when we’re here, we come together as one. When we step into the gym, we’re a team and hear together.”

BG: What else do you do at school besides things involving sports?

SC: “I’m involved in JAG, running a food pantry through the program, and I volunteer in several different things. I’m in NHS and last year I was on the Math Bowl team.”

BG: What do you like to do outside of school and sports?

SC: “I love to read and spend a lot of my time outside school reading. Last year, I read more than 40 books. I also love to hang out with friends and family. I like being around people.”

BG: What are your favorites in reading, movies, TV and music?

SC: “I love romance novels and movies. I also like thrillers. I can read about any book, aside from school or history related. For movies, if it seem a little bit interesting, I’ll watch it.”

BG: Are you a person that wants to watch TV shows and movies or stream something from YouTube, Twitch, TikTok etc.?

SC: “I’d get on my phone first. That seems to be a normal thing in my routine when I have free time.”

BG: What is something you have never done before that you would like to do someday?

SC: “Bungie jumping. I’d be terrified but I still think it would be fun.”

BG: What is your biggest fear?

SC: “Clowns are scary. I don’t like them.”

BG: You’ve been placed in charge of making dinner. What’s on the menu?

SC: “Chicken alfredo. It’s one of my favorite meals and we usually have the stuff for it at home, so that’s what I’d make.”

BG: Do you have any pets?

SC: “I have a dog, Ziggy, an outside cat named Rita who is sweet, though she brings a lot of dead animals to our porch, and an indoor cat named Charlie who is really mean.”

BG: If your house were on fire, all living things were already out and you have your keys, cell phone, wallet/purse etc., what is one thing you would go back and get?

SC: “Probably a sweatshirt. I really like my sweatshirts, so I’d grab one of those, especially if it’s cold outside.”

BG: A family member has hit the lottery. After everything is paid off and money is set away for the future, you’ve been asked to buy something you have always wanted to get. What are you asking for?

SC: “I would get a Camaro or a Corvette. Probably a Camaro. A dark green one.”

BG: If you were to describe your personality in one word, what would that word be and why?

SC: “Bubbly. I can talk to anyone, put on a smile, even if I’m not having a good day, and have a good personality for anyone.”

BG: What has been your favorite place to visit?

SC: “Probably my mamaw’s condo in Florida. Our family always goes down there and has a good time down by the pool or by the beach. It’s always a good time.”

BG: What was your favorite school field trip?

SC: “Going to Turkey Run in fifth grade, even if I saw a snake and was a little scared. It was still a fun field trip.”

BG: How important is support from your family and classmates to your success?

SC: “I’ve always had a ton of support, from my family especially, so it’s really important to me. They’ve always been there so I don’t know what it would be like to not have it. It would be a big change.”

BG: Describe your overall school experience both academically and athletically.

SC: “Academically, it’s been challenging but fun. Athletically, there have been a lot of changes. We have gone through several coaches in basketball; we had a coaching change in volleyball too but it was a bit more consistent with (North Putnam volleyball head coach) Jenny (Heron). In track, we’ve gone through a coach too but (North Putnam track head coach Matt) Couch has done a good job of getting the program to where he wants it to be.”

BG: If your school was to offer a class it currently doesn’t, what would you want to see taught?

SC: “I’d probably want to learn French or another language. I’d only want to take the first year, though, because it gets harder after that. I want to learn basic phrases and things like that.”

BG: What are your plans for after high school, and what career are you headed toward?

SC: “I want to go to Trine University as part of the doctoral in physical therapy program. I’m hoping to do their accelerated program, which is three plus three in terms of years, to get my doctoral degree in six years.”

BG: Is it difficult to keep up with your school work being an athlete?

SC: “No. It’s about time management. Freshman year it was a little harder but once you learn how to put aside time just for school work, you learn how to manage things well.”

BG: Which particular classes and teachers have helped you the most in high school?

SC: “Ms. Lippencott has done such a good job of teaching us all we need to know, even in AP calculus. She does a good job of helping us understand things. She has also helped me just as a person. She teaches a lot of good life skills in her class.”

BG: In the future, once you’ve established yourself, if you had your choice, would you want to live in the mountains, on the beach or in the neighborhood?

SC: “I would want to be in a small, rural area because my dream, when I’m older, is to operate a rescue farm and to have a lot of animals. I want to have enough land and space for that. I used to want to be a vet but decided on a different path.”

BG: Do you think high school has gone fast, and are you going to miss it?

SC: “It has gone by super fast. I will miss being around the people every day. Going to Trine, which is three hours away, means it will be harder to keep up with communication with everyone, so I will miss that aspect.”