Sarah Patrick Has Schools Competing Over Her

RHP’s Shortstop is fiery on the field.

[ClickPress, Wed Aug 01 2007] Rolling Hills Prep School’s softball team shortstop, Sarah Patrick, is admittedly very competitive. Her winning spirit and academic prowess has initiated a competition among some very impressive universities who wish to recruit the high school senior. Sarah is currently being recruited by Yale, Harvard, UPenn, and Princeton and will be making visits to all four campuses before making her final decision but is leaning towards U Penn.

Sarah was born in Torrance and raised in Torrance and Palos Verdes and has attended Rolling Hills Prep School for six years and currently resides in Palos Verdes Estates. Her interest in softball began at the tender age of 4 but she made it her only sport at the age of 13. The confident player readily admits that she always had her eye on the prize of scholarship.

In a career laced with highlights, Sarah recalls one tournament where she shined with both her glove and her bat. “I was playing centerfield in a game during the Colorado Fireworks Exposure Tournament: I dived over the fence (knocking it down) and caught 3 separate balls that would have been homeruns which saved us 7 runs! Then with my team down by two runs in the bottom of the 7th and two outs and runners on 1st and 2nd, I hit a three run homer over the left field fence to win the game 7-6. U Penn, Yale, Harvard, Princeton were all there and were very very impressed,” stated Sarah.

When asked about her love of playing ball, the young woman sounds like a seasoned veteran. “I like the feeling of diving into the grass to catch balls and the teamwork it takes to win a game. It takes a string of well-timed/placed hits to score a lot of runs, not just one person. The game also takes a lot of coordination because missing the ball by 1/8 of an inch can turn your line drive into a pop up,” adds Sarah.

Sarah Patrick readily credits her coaches for her success and love of the game. In particular, she mentions that Rolling Hills Prep softball coach Keith Welker “works really hard and cares a lot about the girls.” Coach Welker recognizes Sarah’s game and adds: “Sarah’s baseball IQ is off the chart! Not unlike her academic IQ. This is a terrific kid to coach.” Sarah would not be the person she is without mentioning her other, previous coaches. Kim Johnston, Christy Cerecedes, and Rich Johnston have greatly influenced her life and got her really interested in softball. “They worked with me for years, even when I was being held down by my injuries and was thinking about quitting,” states Sarah.

One other person who recognized that Sarah Patrick is an exceptional player is softball great Lisa Fernandez. The softball legend and Olympic gold medalist picked Sarah out of a group of talented players at the Lisa Fernandez Clinic. Fernandez approached Sarah and her batting coach after watching the RHP slugger taker her swings.

“Lisa told us she was very impressed with my swing and my power and that I am ‘the real deal.’ She told me that I could be great . . . a standout. She gave me confidence and made me really believe I could play softball at the collegiate level someday. She signed my glove, gave me a high five, and I was just thrilled,” stated Sarah.

With all of her accomplishments, Sarah does recognize the benefit of a great home team. “My parents have been so supportive. They’ve taken me to all my games and cheered me on. My team mates at RHP also make me feel fortunate.”

About Rolling Hills Preparatory School
Rolling Hills Preparatory School is a 26-year old, independent community school serving grade 6-12 students from 21 South Bay cities ranging from El Segundo to Long Beach. RHP is appropriately called a “community school” as it serves the broader educational interests of the South Bay as a community-based institution serving a broad array of educational constituents. RHP is a traditional college preparatory school whose mission for its college bound students is to develop disciplined minds, sound character, healthy bodies, and creative spirits. RHP is home to the Road to Excellence program which provides a variety of support services to intellectually capable, college bound students with specific, language-based learning differences. Ninety-nine percent of RHP students matriculate to student-appropriate colleges that include the nation’s finest public and private universities, local community colleges, special-focus engineering and arts colleges, and an array of state universities.

While offering a rigorous college prep curriculum, the school employs the latest proven innovative teaching models and learning styles to maximize the performance of individual students. The school encourages collaboration with other programs and non-profits to motivate and provide experiential learning to students. Arts collaborations, robotics, community service projects, and the outdoor education component of the curriculum are examples of RHP’s focus on encouraging its students to be high performers.

RHP relocated to its new campus in San Pedro in February of 2007. The new campus is one of the first privately-held, fully-sustainable, “green” campuses in the Western United States.

RHPS has its accreditation through the Western Association of Schools and Colleges (WASC) and the California Association of Independent Schools (CAIS). In addition RHPS is a member of the National Association of Independent Schools (NAIS).

For more information contact Ileana International:

Mike Mena
310 683-6327
mike@ileanainternational.com

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