On Thursday, April 6, 2017, Souderton Cara Romaniello was recognized for committing to continue her basketball and soccer career at the collegiate level. To view photos of the event, please visit the Photo Gallery.
Cara Romaniello – Marywood University (Soccer/Basketball)
Major: Pre-Physician Assistant Studies
Final list of colleges: Marywood, Arcadia
Reasons for choosing Marywood: “It’s a relatively small campus with a real community feel. It was really easy to navigate when I visited and the people that I met were all really nice and welcoming. I got a chance to sit in on some classes and meet with the teachers as well, and the staff seemed like they really cared about the students and made sure they understood the concepts before they moved on. Also, the team atmosphere was wonderful. All the girls were hard workers but were very close to each other so they had really good chemistry. The coaches that I met with all had the same thought process as me, and we agreed on everything when it came to how hard you had to work to get where you want to be. Lastly, it just felt very homey. The dorm rooms were really big and nice, not dirty or old or anything, and there was enough space on campus that it didn’t feel like the buildings were on top of each other.”
What was the progression that led you to playing soccer and basketball at the collegiate level? “I have been playing soccer since I was four years old and I have been playing basketball since I was seven. I started thinking that I wanted to play at the college level at a really young age. The only problem I had was choosing which sport I liked more. I still haven’t made that decision hence why I made the decision to play for a D3 school. It would be my only chance to play both sports.
“I had always played travel/club soccer, and AAU basketball outside of school. But as a freshman, I played high school soccer, but I was going into the season with an injury that kept me from finishing tryouts. Fortunately, I still made the JV team but had to miss out on half the season until I recovered. I tried out again the next year and made JV as well, but the next year I got cut. I continued with my club team, went to tournaments and got recruited by many colleges.
“For basketball I played all four years of my high school career - three years varsity and my last year I was co-captain. However, it was really AAU that got me exposure to colleges. The end of my junior year and that summer were the most success I had with contacting colleges. I was traveling across the East Coast to different tournaments and getting looks. In total, I had 32 colleges that contacted me about playing basketball for them, and only about three of those 32 I contacted first to come watch me. The rest came to me first. I narrowed my search down based on distance from home along with taking a few visits here and there to see if I felt like I could see myself going there. My final decision was Marywood after a wonderful overnight visit with them.”
Souderton basketball coach Lynn Carroll says: “It was an ongoing joke for four years that when I would tell the team to line up on the baseline for sprints everyone would groan while Cara would smile. I don't think there was a sprint that she didn't win over the course of her career. She was an extremely hard worker and really helped set the bar at practice with her work ethic. During her senior year, there were times when we asked her to be a vocal leader in the locker room and she did a great job stepping up and displaying leadership. Marywood is getting a tough, gritty player out of Cara and we wish her success as she moves on to this next chapter in her life.”'
About Cara
Favorite food: Crab Legs
Favorite movie: Princess Diaries 2
Favorite music: Classical
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