Indiana Wesleyan University is home to over 20 athletic teams. Not all of these athletes began their collegiate journey at IWU.
Athletes such as Jessica Ickes, an IWU Volleyball transfer, began her journey at a different university before finding her way to be a Wildcat.
“The biggest thing I was looking for was a Christian school, a good community, and a good culture,” Ickes said. “My last school, [the] biggest thing I struggled with was the lack of community.”
Ickes transferred to IWU after attending Lake Erie College for two seasons.
“I trust my teammates. I know that they have my back, and I have their back,” Ickes said. “At the end of the day, we all [are] rooting for each other’s successes no matter where we are on the court.”
Men’s Basketball, Bright Kari is another junior transfer student-athlete at IWU, coming from the University of Antelope Valley.
“I enjoyed my visit here the most,” Kari said.
He also explained that another influence in his decision to transfer was the difference in culture on campus and on his team.
“You have to actually take time to get to know one another, take time to learn everybody’s stories, and to have different types of experiences away from basketball,” said Kari. “Other schools, you go there, and they just focus on getting you a degree and getting you out.”
Jordyn Ball is a junior on the IWU Softball team and transferred from Central Methodist University. Even before knowing anything about IWU, she noticed a very different sort of culture between her team then and the IWU team.
“They came to play us, and there was just this indescribable joy that they played with and this freedom,” Ball said. “I looked into their coach, and I realized what a faith-based program it was.”
Ball explained how IWU’s approach to everything, including sports, has been different from her previous university.
“I’ve learned that God can be incorporated into anything we do, especially sports,” Ball said.
Each student-athlete’s story is different. Ickes, Kari, and Ball, have been guided to IWU and have learned to grow in community with their teammates as well as in their sports.
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