Student Athlete of the Week – Jackie Wahl
Her coach calls her sunshine.
“It doesn’t matter where we go, when she walks into a tournament, when we’re walking out, when we’re walking into a huddle, Jackie has a smile on her face. She just has this ability to, kind of, brighten everybody up around her,” said Becca Brown, head volleyball coach at Palm Desert High School.
“Being positive is also, kind of my thing, like, I always try to find light in a situation, because I used to not do that, and I used to be really kind of negative about some things, and I’ve just grown up and I’ve learned that finding light in things and positivity makes you, like, so much happier,” said Jackie Wahl, Palm Desert volleyball captain.
Jackie Wahl’s success on the volleyball court speaks for itself: a three-year captain, CIF Southern Section First Team, Desert Empire League Offensive MVP of the Year and All-DEL First team, just to name a few of her accomplishments.
“If you would’ve told my freshman self that just started on varsity that I would’ve accomplished this many things, I would’ve been like, ‘What? You’re crazy!’” She said.
“There’s not a price you can put on a player like Jackie Wahl and she’s done such a great job pushing the players around her, and making the team around her so much better,” said Brown.
Wahl’s ability to remain even-keeled, especially under pressure, thrust her into a leadership role as an underclassman. She embraced it.
“If I was in their shoes, like, what would I want a leader to do in some situations? And I think that’s something that’s really helped me through it and I think a really important thing is being able to relate with your teammates on a different level, like being friends with them outside the court, which I am,” Wahl said.
“Most people have emotional highs and lows, but Jackie, even at a young age was able to control that,” Brown said.
Wahl hopes that she and her teammates, who she calls family, will get to have their final season together.
Next year, her goal is to have a volleyball scholarship to a school in Southern California. She says her dream job would be a NICU nurse, or helping others in some way.
