SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete (Week of April 24, 2013)
Jessica Stecklein’s part time job is leading her down a career path. The Neshaminy senior, a standout on the track team, works as a dietary aid at Pickering Manor, an assisted living facility for senior citizens. “I’ve met so many interesting people,” Stecklein said. “So many of the residents really have led interesting lives and have a lot to say and a lot of times I get to meet their families and spend time talking to them too. I enjoy it a lot.” So much so that she is pointed toward a career in medicine. She is planning to attend Penn State where she will major in biobehavioral health. Her long-term career goal is to be a physician’s assistant or a nurse practitioner. “Working at Pickering Manor gave me that idea,” Stecklein said.
Stecklein’s desire to help others isn’t limited to health or medicine. She volunteers for Middletown Township as part of her community service through the National Honor Society. “I really enjoyed doing it,” she said. “I got to meet a lot of new people, and it’s not a burden when you know you’re doing something for a good cause. I didn’t get paid, but I was helping others, and there’s honestly something really rewarding in that that doesn’t have anything to do with money.”
These days Stecklein is focused on her final track and field season at Neshaminy. She is, according to coach Margie Stefan, the team’s most valuable in long jump as well as the sprints, excelling in the 100 and 200-meter dashes as well as the 4x100 relay. Her goal is to break the school long jump record, which is 17-5. Her top jump is 17 3/3/4. Steklein qualified for indoor states in the 4x200 as a junior and senior. Last spring, she qualified for districts in all four of her events (long jump, 100, 200 and 4x100 relay), and she is a member of the 4x100 team that is top five in Pennsylvania and has qualified for nationals. Not surprisingly, Stefan relies on her senior captain. “There are so many events in track, and I can’t be everywhere at once,” the Redskins’ coach said. “If I’m working with a group of girls on handoffs, I can ask Jessica to go work with the jumpers and know she is capable. She’s a great captain and a real leader and role model for our team.”
To read Stecklein’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/jessica-stecklein-0034191
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete (Week of April 24, 2013)
Rob Pecharo isn’t really sure how he came by his love of baseball. “Neither of my parents played,” the Plymouth Whitemarsh senior said. “I don’t even know how I started with baseball. My dad was not athletic – he’s a musician. My mom played a couple of sports, but my brother and I both love baseball. I don’t know where it came from.” Wherever it came from, baseball has become one of Pecharo’s passions, and according to his coach, he is one of those players every team needs. “He’s not likely to play collegiately next year and will probably not even put up very flashy numbers this year,” the Colonials’ first-year coach said. “But he is certainly one of those ‘under the radar’ and perhaps under-recognized sort of players that completes a team.”
This season, Pecharo is a fixture at first base for the Colonials, and he also has seen bullpen duty. “We’ve been battling injuries, and because of that, we’ve had to use Rob (out of the bullpen) more,” he said. “That was something I wasn’t necessarily expecting. I didn’t know how much time he would get on the mound with the other arms we had, but again, there he is – ready to throw whenever we needed him, ready to come right out of the field without even getting a bullpen session to pitch and never complaining about it.”
When his team had some struggles at third base, Manero plugged Pecharo into the hot corner even though he had not practiced there all season. “Again, it goes back to that theme that he’s always there, and he’s always available for whatever we needed whenever we need him,” Manero said. “He’s one of the most coachable players – if not the most coachable player I have ever worked with. When he makes a mistake, he wants to get right back out there and do it right the next time instead of looking for an excuse as to why it didn’t work. He’ll never hang his head. If he strikes out to end the inning, he’ll be the first guy out there on the field.” It’s those traits that set Pecharo apart, and it’s those traits that make him such a valuable member of the team. “He’s not an overly vocal leader, but I know when I have young guys on the team and I want my younger players to look and see how they’re supposed to act or what they’re supposed to do, he’s the guy I want them to look at,” Manero said. “He’s the guy I would want my younger players to see how he reacts to adversity, how he carries himself on the field.”
A hard worker in the classroom as well, Pecharo plans to attend West Chester University this fall where he will major in business with his sights set on pursuing a master’s degree in sports management. He hopes to play baseball at the intramural level.
To view Pecharo’s complete profile, please click on the following link: http://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/rob-pecharo-0034192
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