NASHVILLE, Tenn. — Sure, by the time it’s over, college can feel as if it passed in the blink of an eye. But a blink can also feel like an eternity. From the day Alexa Gianoplus arrived at Vanderbilt as a freshman goalkeeper on the soccer team to the start of her final season, more than 2 million minutes ticked by. She played just 140 of them.
Orientation came and went. Double majors came and went. Exams and papers, coffees and concerts, all came and went. Senior Day in uniform and then commencement in cap and gown came and went. Through it all, Gianoplus stayed. And waited.
It would be easy to say she waited for this—for an opportunity to be the starting goalkeeper on the No. 1 team in the country, a cornerstone for the SEC regular season champions and a team that aspires to go beyond the historic Sweet 16 and Elite Eight runs of the past two seasons. And in one respect, it would be correct. She never stopped believing that, given the opportunity, she could help bring out the best in a team. So, she waited for the chance.
But staying? That was about finding people and a place that brought out the best in her.