AUTHENTIC SOCCER MOM BRINGS GRIT, EXPERIENCE TO COLLEGE TEAM.Byline: Mary Schubert Daily News Staff Writer Jeanette Ferguson is nine years older than some of her soccer teammates and the only member of the Cougar cougar: see puma. cougar or puma or mountain lion or panther Species (Puma concolor) of large, graceful cat that lives in a wide variety of habitats in the Americas, from southern Alaska to Patagonia. squad who juggles bedtime stories with road games and workouts - the team's real-life soccer mom soccer mom n. An American mother living in the suburbs whose time is often spent transporting her children from one athletic activity or event to another. . At 27, Ferguson is part of the new women's soccer team at College of the Canyons College of the Canyons is one of the fastest-growing community colleges in the state. According to the National Junior College Research Association, College of the Canyons consistently ranks in the top 50 community colleges in the nation. . Although her playing time has been limited so far this inaugural season, Ferguson said she's happy to be in uniform and back in school after a long detour from college. Along the way, she got married, had a baby, got divorced, spent several years as a single working mother and, most recently, married a man with two children of his own. Ferguson's journey has been bumpy at times, and it's a path she wouldn't recommend to girls fresh out of high school. ``It's nothing that I would advocate for my teammates,'' she said. Yet, she added, those life experiences molded her into the student-athlete-wife-mother she is today, and that's reason enough to think it was worth the struggle because of where she ended up. Ferguson made the Cougar soccer team in July, three weeks into its summer workouts. Some members had committed to the squad back in the spring, so Ferguson's late start - on top of her age and family commitments - all worked against her. ``It's a tough balance to be older and married and have kids,'' she said of the six-day-a-week workouts, out-of-town tournaments and road games that will comprise College of the Canyons' soccer season that extends through November. In fact, before the Cougars' home opener last month, she quit the team out of fear that she had underestimated the time and effort she'd have to devote to practice and competitions that would take her away from her husband and children. ``I decided that my family interests needed to come first. I had responsibilities at home, and I didn't think I could be under that much pressure,'' Ferguson said. ``Travel was a big obstacle for me. I didn't feel like I was cutting the mustard at home. I wasn't sure I could handle it for another nine weeks.'' She remembers telling Coach Phil Marcellin: ``I don't know Don't know (DK, DKed) "Don't know the trade." A Street expression used whenever one party lacks knowledge of a trade or receives conflicting instructions from the other party. that I can balance this; I don't know that I can continue at this pace.'' He advised her to talk over her decision with her husband. Ferguson skipped a road game at Mount San Antonio Mount San Antonio, better known to most in Los Angeles as Old Baldy or Mount Baldy, is the highest peak in the San Gabriel Mountains of Southern California, USA and the highest point in Los Angeles County. Mount San Antonio has two summits. College in Walnut and then saw the Cougars' home opener against Santa Barbara City College As of 2004, total enrollment of full-time and part-time students reached 17,000. It is currently led by President John Romo, who will be retiring at the end of Spring 2008 after seven years with the institution. from the sidelines. She quickly had second thoughts. ``Watching my teammates play at that first home game, and not being a part of it, after weeks and weeks of training, was really hard. It just broke my heart to see my teammates out there, and I wasn't part of the team,'' Ferguson said. ``What I discovered was maybe I made a mistake.'' She asked Marcellin to let her back onto the team, and he agreed to give Ferguson another chance - but not without consequences. She lost her starting spot to a teammate, and now logs less playing time in the game and more watching from the bench. Marcellin said Ferguson's teammates accepted her return and that led to his decision. ``You want to help out the individual, but your first concern is, what is this going to do to the chemistry of the team?'' he said. ``When she left the team . . . we weren't prepared for that. At the time she left, she was a starter. We had to plug somebody else in that space,'' the coach said. ``She understood (but) she doesn't like it too much, because she's a competitor,'' Marcellin added. With recent injuries to Cougar players Adriana Contreras and Brandee Whitney, there may be more opportunities for Ferguson to play, he said. ``What I've learned is I don't like sitting on the bench,'' added Ferguson, a midfielder. Going into Friday's game at Glendale Community College Glendale Community College can refer to one of two colleges in the United States.
Marcellin said his players have struggled to varying degrees to meet the demands of intercollegiate in·ter·col·le·giate adj. Involving or representing two or more colleges. Adj. 1. intercollegiate - used of competition between colleges or universities; "intercollegiate basketball" athletics. ``We have a certain level that we want this program to ascend to. It's our first year, but we're still going to set high goals,'' he said. ``The first part of the season is always the worst,'' the coach added, referring to a spate of preseason road and tournament games, plus a team retreat. ``We were gone from Friday to Sunday two weekends in a row. I tried to explain to (Ferguson) the hardest part is over,'' Marcellin said. ``It was a tough stretch . . . (but) it sort of forged the team quickly into more of a unit.'' Meanwhile, returning to the classroom and the playing field wouldn't have been possible, Ferguson emphasized, without the help and encouragement of her husband, Jeff, and the cooperation of her 8-year-old daughter, 7-year-old stepson step·son n. A spouse's son by a previous union. stepson Noun a son of one's husband or wife by an earlier relationship Noun 1. and 10-year-old stepdaughter step·daugh·ter n. A spouse's daughter by a previous union. stepdaughter Noun a daughter of one's husband or wife by an earlier relationship Noun 1. . It's the first time she's been a full-time student Full-Time Student A status that is important for determining dependency exemptions. An individual enrolled in a post-secondary institution may be eligible for certain tax breaks. Notes: The full-time status is based on what the individual's school considers full time. since enrolling at California State University, Fullerton California State University, Fullerton, commonly known as CSUF, CSU Fullerton, or Cal State Fullerton, is a part of the California State University system. The University is located in the city of Fullerton, California, in northern Orange County. , right after high school. ``During my first semester, I discovered that I was pregnant,'' Ferguson recalled. ``I left college and married the father.'' The marriage ended when the baby was about 18 months old, and Ferguson took a succession of jobs to pay the bills. ``At one point, I worked three jobs when she was little. I worked at a flower shop, I worked at NutraSystem, and I worked at a doctor's office,'' she said. When she was 21, her parents put their Chino Chino (chē`nō), city (1990 pop. 59,682), San Bernardino co., S Calif.; founded 1887, inc. 1910. It is the business and processing center of a diversified farming (notably dairying) area. Hills home up for sale. Ferguson and a friend bought it, ``so I ended up owning the house I grew up in,'' she said. Later she became a receptionist at a law firm, and gradually climbed the career ladder The Career ladder is a metaphor or buzzword used to denote vertical job promotion. In business and human resources management, the ladder typically describes the progression from entry level positions to higher levels of pay, skill, responsibility, or authority. at various law firms This list of the world's largest law firms by revenue is taken from The Lawyer and The American Lawyer and is ordered by 2006 revenue:[1]
A family formed by the remarriage of a divorced or widowed parent. It includes the new husband and wife, plus some or all of their children from previous marriages. Mentioned in: Family Therapy moved to Valencia and she stopped working to focus on college. Her husband urged her to try out for the Cougar soccer team, and in return he now picks up the kids - in second, third and fifth grades - after school, and often handles bathtime and bedtime duties. Over the years, Ferguson had kept a connection to soccer, joining city-sponsored recreation leagues a few nights a week, but COC See chip on chip. soccer has been harder on her body. ``My recovery curve at first was big. I had problems with my Achilles' (tendon) and I spent a lot of our training time wrapped and popping Motrin,'' she said. ``But this is a luxury to be able to go back to school and play soccer. ``Getting my education and finishing up school has always been a real missing piece for me,'' Ferguson said. ``I always felt that my lack of a degree prevented me from going higher up the salary scale at work. After a while, that gets old.'' This semester, she's carrying 13 units including political science, English and a speech class. ``It's a lot different going back to school at 27 than at 18. I'm coming to it with a real different perception and motivation,'' she said. ``When I was 18, I thought I knew it all,'' Ferguson added. ``I would never trade my life experience or the things I know at this age.'' CAPTION(S): photo PHOTO (color) Soccer player Jeanette Ferguson, left, prepares to take her children to school. Myung J. Chun/Daily News |
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