Behind the Balance – Page 4 – Virginia Military Institute

Behind the Balance: Whitney Tracy ’25 — Women’s Keydet Soccer

Virginia Military Institute’s cadet-athletes have to juggle cadet life, heavy academic course loads, and their NCAA Division I sport. Committed to both academic and athletic pursuits, balancing their rigorous schedule in both sports and school requires a certain level of commitment and discipline. Behind the Balance is a series that focuses on those cadet-athletes and how they handle the hurdles of the day-to-day.

With a father as a soccer coach and two older sisters playing the sport, Whitney Tracy ’25 knew she’d be on the field. Except, her father didn’t expect her to be in goal.

“I ended up, as I got older, wanting to play in goal rather than the field, because I didn’t like running. And my dad spent years trying to keep me out of it. He did not want me to be playing goal because he was a coach and that was one position he didn’t know how to coach,” she said. “Well, I don’t like listening to my parents being the youngest child, you know … rebellion. So, I did it anyway. Turns out I was pretty good at it.”

Tracy, originally from outside of Philadelphia, knew she wanted to play Division I soccer, but she also wanted to attend a school that was more academic-focused and structured.

“I started looking at the military route, because it just seemed like it fit for me, that discipline, that idea of everyone caring about where they are,” she said.

She was looking at other military colleges, but realized she didn’t know which branch of the armed forces would suit her best. She wasn’t ready to commit to commissioning. That’s when one of the coaches from Virginia Military Institute reached out.

“It kind of fit perfectly for me,” she said.

Not only is she the starting goal for the team, she’s also a S4 lieutenant, and part of the VMI Institute Honors Program. Her duties as a S4 lieutenant are handling supply and logistics for the Corps and other programs within the Institute. That also means she’s on post before most of the Corps with soccer and her regimental duties.

Tracy arrives a month before the fall semester starts. The first two weeks are devoted to soccer, then it’s onto her cadre responsibilities.

It can get really busy to balance everything, specifically Cadre Week,” she said. “We were just kind of prepping. We set up all of the rat’s’ rooms. We made sure that each one had the proper amount of hays in it. My staff was making sure that all the rooms were proper.”

Matriculation Week was also hectic getting supplies and organized, Tracy explained. That’s all while handling her soccer schedule too, which only gets busier when classes start.

Cadet-athletes at VMI not only have their responsibilities with their selected sport but cadet duties on top of that. Cadets are also required to take physical fitness classes twice a week, participate in ROTC all four years, prepare for room and uniform inspections, practice for parade, guard duty, and more.

Tracy’s busy schedule isn’t a hinderance, though. It has helped her.

“I’ve always been big on being involved in things. I don’t like sitting on the sidelines,” she said. “I’m somebody who likes trying to figure out what’s going on and help organize stuff.”

Her job as a lieutenant is directing her sergeants and corporals.

Whitney Tracy blocking a soccer ball during a Virginia Military Institute women's soccer game. — NCAA Women’s Soccer: Midshipmen prevail over VMI, 3-2

“That’s kind of where I thrive,” she said. “How do I disseminate it to get it done? How do I make sure that everything gets done? I can look at all the pieces and say, ‘Oh, this is not being done in an efficient way. How can we make this more efficient?’”

Now in her final year at VMI as a biology major, she has a 12-credit semester for the fall, which is significantly down from previous semesters of 19 or more credits. She planned it this way, by taking heavier class loads previously, plus she did a summer abroad study program in Ireland last summer that gave her six credits.

“I’ve taken the extra credits so that I can have that light semester,” she said. “I wanted my senior year to be able to say, I have rats, I’m finishing up my soccer career. I want to be able to go out on the weekends with my friends and go get dinner in town on Thursday night and not have to worry about six tests next week, and everything else. I kind of front loaded myself so then I could breathe my 1st Class year.”

Don’t let the 12 credits fool you though. She’s also working on her senior thesis that she will present in the spring. Her research is on the pathogenic fungal disease called White Nose Syndrome in the rock crevices of a species of bats called the Eastern small footed bats.

Her days are still packed. She’s up at 6:30 a.m. daily for formation, then it’s breakfast, classes all day, and onto practice. By 8 p.m. she’s set in doing homework.

“I would say I’m very big on writing things down. I have a pretty good memory when it comes to scheduling. But when it comes to homework assignments, I have to be able to see everything. I’m a very visual person.”

She says it’s hard for her to get schoolwork done during the day because she’s so busy either talking to her professors or other tasks. But communicating with her professors is integral to keeping up with her studies and playing soccer — she’s able to work out missed tests or class assignments when she is in constant communication with them.

Getting any work done on bus rides is a no-go for Tracy. It’s tough to get any real work done, she said. Instead, the team ends up doing a lot of work together at the hotel prior to game times.

“The team is down in the lobby doing homework, we’re all very motivated academically that we want to make sure that we have stuff done,” she said.

Her plans after graduation are to take a gap year, get her certified nursing assistant certification, work on contact patient hours, then apply to a physician assistant program.

Behind the Balance: Patrick Kiernan ’25 — Keydet Cross Country

Community is something Patrick Kiernan ’25 values in his life. It’s one of the reasons he chose to go to Virginia Military Institute and also a big part as to why he’s on the cross country team.

He started running at a young age, thanks to a cross country camp he attended with his cousin.

“I enjoyed it, not just the sport, but the community that camp built,” he said. “I decided to do it in high school, and I really enjoyed just that sense of community I had with my teammates. I think I was a lot closer than other sports teams I had been on in middle school and elementary school.”

He continued running through high school and by his junior year, he was contacting the coach at VMI to inquire about running there. He had to track his times and give the coach updates, to show the progress he was making. Then a couple days after Matriculation Week, he was able to join the team practices.

When he first started on the team, he was averaging about 45 to 60 miles a week. Now, it’s between 60 and 80 miles.

“The longest I’ll go is 16 miles, but it depends on the day. So, some — we call them a maintenance or a recovery run — will be, for me, around eight to 10 miles,” he said. “Our harder days will usually be around 10 to 13 miles. Then usually we’ll have one really long run of about 12 to 16 consecutive miles.”

To keep occupied during the longer runs, Kiernan says he’s usually running in a group, so they’ll all talk to each other.

“When I’m on my own, my mind just kind of wanders. On a busier day, I might just be thinking about planning out my week or my day, like how I’m going to get things done,” he said. “Every once in a while, I’ll have earbuds in and listen to music. ”

Kiernan keeps a tight schedule, as do most cadets. He’s asleep by 10:30 p.m. after a full day of activities. The history major has found the busier he is, the more time he has to finish tasks. The constant movement and busyness allow him to stay focused. He participates in several clubs and serves as a S7 lieutenant, which deals with cadet life and is responsible for the general well-being and morale of the Corps of Cadets. He’s also a cadet chaplain.

“Last year was probably one of my busiest years as a cadet, where I had a bunch of different obligations. I had my rank, being on the team, I was also president of the Newman Society, vice president for Pre-Law Society. I constantly had stuff I was doing,” he said. “I think a lot of it was trying to prioritize, my sleep and not staying up super late. I found those little bits in the day and figured out how long it took me to get an assignment for class done or get something done. It was more just figuring out the little moments in the day I can use to get a little bit of work done, and then that just built up.”

Patrick Kiernan running cross country for Virginia Military Institute.

“I think it was a lot about just me prioritizing getting work done in the day, so you have less to do at night,” he said.

He said being part of cadre has helped him establish a way to manage his time. During Cadre Week, he had to figure out what to make a priority due to multiple meetings and rank responsibilities.

“It was deciding which ones were a higher priority that I needed to be at and then which ones I could just have someone fill me in on what it was about,” he said. “I think even throughout the school year, it’s a similar thing of figuring out what needs to be done immediately and what can wait, or what I should start on early, so it doesn’t become a problem later.”

He believes VMI has built up a certain discipline in his work ethic and how he approaches problems.

“I’ve noticed that being at VMI, when they talk about discipline, it’s not doing the insane hard, workouts and stuff every day. A lot of it’s just doing those small things you don’t really want to do, like getting up early,” he said. “I think that adaptability is a big thing. There’s a lot of sudden changes, military or non-military life, where things just come up. I think it’s helped me be fairly adaptable, where I can just on the fly make an adjustment in my schedule or in my day to figure out how to get a lot of things done.”

Behind the Balance: Sedona Dancu ’25 — Women’s Keydet Soccer

Sedona Dancu ’25 said she wasn’t even looking at military colleges until she received a call from the women’s soccer coach at Virginia Military Institute. The psychology major, with a minor in exercise science and leadership studies, said once she learned about the vast alumni network VMI offers and the connections she could gain, she was in. That coupled with a soccer scholarship, it was the best move for her.

At the age of two, she was handed a soccer ball and there was no turning back. It’s the competitiveness and team aspect she enjoys the most.

“It’s hard to explain. I feel content when I’m on the field,” she said.

But it’s the tightness of the team that’s kept her at VMI.

“At VMI, with it not being a lot of girls, we will all do anything for each other,” she said of the girls on her team. “We will stand up for each other in any situation. I could trust all of them with my life. We go through so much, especially the girls in my class, starting with the Rat Line together.”

She said from her first year, her class went from 14 women on the team down to eight.

“All eight of us are really close,” she said.

Dancu is up at 5 a.m. during the week for practice. Then it’s breakfast and onto classes. This semester she has her lightest load with 12 and a half credits. Previously, most of her semesters were 18 credits or more. After classes end at 3 p.m., she’s rushing off to another practice until 7 p.m. Then it’s dinner, homework, and bed. Some nights she stays up past midnight doing homework, only to turn around and get up at 5 a.m. the next morning.

“I think the quickest thing I had to learn was to manage my time and not procrastinate,” she said. “Procrastinating is huge, especially as a 4th Class cadet. You can easily procrastinate things because you get so loaded with all the Rat Line responsibilities, soccer, and getting used to being in college.”

Managing time, and having discipline and accountability are high priorities for Dancu.

“I usually write out a schedule … just managing every hour of the day. Because every minute of the day here is so precious,” she said.

She feels that VMI has helped provide the structure that’s needed to follow a strict schedule. When Dancu compares her college life to her friends or siblings at more traditional colleges, there’s such a difference.

“They have like one class every two days and then they can sleep in. It’s funny comparing schedules, because we’re literally up from 7 a.m. to midnight doing things every hour,” she said. “Even when you don’t have homework, we have military duty. In season, you’re traveling, and we get back at 4 a.m., then you have to go to class.”

Sedona Dancu kicks the soccer ball at a Virginia Military Institute women's soccer game. — VMI’s women’s soccer team hosts Emory & Henry University at Patchin Field in Lexington, VA August 24, 2024. First half, VMI wins 2-0. (Randall K. Wolf/VMI)

Despite the rigorous schedule, Dancu pointed out that the women’s soccer team won an academic award for highest GPA among women’s sports at VMI last year.

“It’s really motivating, because when we’re on the bus or in the hotel room, everyone is doing homework, and you’re like, shoot, I should probably be doing it, too,” she said. “They’re just so smart and on top of it. In a way, soccer helps with school, because you have the time to do class and then you have practice. If I didn’t play sport here, it would be difficult for me to focus. Being on the soccer team and having such a busy schedule, it makes it easier to get your homework done.”

Dancu said she’s someone who loves staying busy. When she’s on break from school, she’s on a mission to fill her days.

“I can’t just sit around and not do anything,” she said. “It’s taught me what hard work looks like and I am very grateful for that, because I think it will really help me in the future.”

Being at VMI has offered her discipline.

“I’m more disciplined in all aspects of my life, especially my faith,” she said. “My faith has grown tremendously since I’m a cadet chaplain.”

She’s already seen the alumni network work for her. This past summer she had an internship at the University of North Florida, working in the athletic marketing department. An alumnus got her in contact with the right people and she was offered the opportunity.

Following graduation, she plans on playing soccer for one more year while attending graduate school. She wants to pursue leadership studies, ministry, or something in sports.

Behind the Balance: Terrell Jackson ’25 — Keydet Football

When Terrell Jackson ’25 got to Virginia Military Institute, he was assigned an academic advisor through cadet athletic development. With resources like the Miller Academic Center, Jackson said VMI provides opportunities for those who may fall behind on academic studies.

“It really comes down to just using the resources that VMI provides,” he said.

Academic advisors are standard in a college environment, Jackson said.

“They help you arrange your schedule in the beginning of the semester. But also, after you arrange it, they help you stay on top of all the work that you have, keep track of your grades, let you know what you’re slipping up or getting behind on, and what you need to do to get back to it,” he said.

They even help you find tutors, which Jackson did for history. The psychology major said the extra guidance helped him with his VMI journey.

As a captain on the defensive line, his responsibilities go beyond the field. He’s one of seven captains for the 124-player team. He says it’s an honor to see his teammates hold him in a higher regard and have respect for him.

Being captain also means meeting with several different organizations on post. From meeting with the regimental staff, the general committee comprised of a board of cadets, to meeting with Maj. Gen. Cedric T. Wins ’85, superintendent, Jackson and the other captains are there to maintain a relationship between athletics and the Corps, while also providing support to rats on the team.

His days start and end with football, while carrying a 15 and a half credit course load. Waking up between 6 or 6:45 a.m. each day, he goes through the motions of a cadet — rolling his hay, heading to morning practice, then onto breakfast before a full day of classes. By 3:50 p.m., it’s time for the team meeting to start where the head coach addresses the team.

“The whole team gets together, and the head coach talks about what we’re doing for the day: what we have planned for our game, how the other team looks, the game plan, and what each position or unit needs to do for us to win the game,” he said.

Then they all break out into specific meetings where it’s dedicated to their positions on the field. That’s where they spend time watching game film to learn either their own strengths and weaknesses or that of the other team they are set to play. By 5:30 p.m. they’re out on the practice field.

Everything is wrapped up after 7 p.m. after the players do cool downs, treatments, and showers. Jackson oversees accounting for everyone as they line up to head to Crozet Hall for dinner. He turns in a sheet of names to the commandant’s office for accountability.

There’s a lot of moving parts that Jackson must account for daily, so staying on top of everything takes dedication.

Terrell Jackson at a Virginia Military Institute football game.

“It’s just about putting in effort. There’s no special trick or secret magic to it,” he said. “You’ve got to not complain about it and just keep going. You were put here for a reason; you’ve got to embrace your role. Our biggest thing on the football team this year is just building a legacy. We might not win a playoff game or win a championship. If my class and the captains that we have now start building a legacy so we could come back in four years and we’re on top of the SoCon, or win the national championships, I’ll be happy to say, I started that. That came from our class.”

The discipline and routine that VMI has instilled in Jackson is something he will carry throughout his life.

“It’ll force you to get some time management skills. Either you get them or you’ll get left behind,” he said. “VMI is a tough place to be, especially to last. A lot of people could come here, but can you last?”

Behind the Balance: Abby Fiorillo ’25 — Keydet Cross Country

It wasn’t love at first run for Abby Fiorillo ’25. She said her father made her do cross country when she was in high school, but the longer she ran, her love for the sport grew.

It brought her community, and it was something that she was excited to continue to do while at Virginia Military Institute.

“I love the competition,” she said. “It’s challenging, and I like the community around it.”

The physics major chose VMI for the ROTC aspect; she will be commissioning into the U.S. Army after graduation next year.

“I chose VMI for a lot of reasons,” she said. “My brother came here, so it was familiar. And then I really wanted the community that VMI has to offer.”

That community can be found in the Corps and within the cross country team. She said when she’s training during the week, she’s often running with a friend or finding time to reflect on her own. Her daily runs average between seven and eight miles, while she’s doing between 40 and 45 miles weekly.

“My favorite part about cross country is practicing. I love working out, and I don’t have to plan when my workouts are going to be. I already know I have a specified time,” she said. “It’s consistent. When I’m not studying or when I’m stressed, cross country gives me that outlet and that mental focus.”

She’s chatting it up when she runs with friends. Other days, she opts to listen to music on her phone.

“Some of the time, it’s like meditation,” she said. “And sometimes I don’t even think about anything. I’m just running.”

It’s become sort of routine for her, she said.

“I really don’t pay attention to it anymore because I’m so used to running it,” she said. “Now I just want to just go into my little mental state and clear my mind, or think about what happened that day, or something that’s on my mind, or what I want to do in the future.”

Abby Fiorillo running cross country for Virginia Military Institute.

It can also serve as a planning period for her. Cadet-athletes at VMI not only have their responsibilities with their selected sport but cadet duties on top of that. Cadets are also required to take physical fitness classes twice a week, participate in ROTC all four years, prepare for room and uniform inspections, practice for parade, guard duty, and more.

Her regimented days begin at 6:45 a.m. and don’t end until after 8 p.m. She does set a hard stop at 10:30 p.m.

“I try to get as much sleep as I can, just because it’s taxing on your body and I enjoy it,” she said about her sport.

She said having a plan and system is important, especially knowing your priorities.

“I love my sport, but I’m here for academics. I’m really getting a degree out of this. It’s having priorities and knowing how to schedule it all, staying on top of homework, practicing every day and doing everything you can, just to fit it all in,” she said. “I think I was pretty good at routine in high school, but VMI made me realize that I can fit so much more into my routine than I thought.”

Fiorillo said the constant go of VMI will help her become a great leader. With her desire to commission into the Army, the ability of coming up with a plan and procedure will lend itself to her leading a platoon, she said.

“Knowing that there are going to be early days, late days … every day is going to be different. But making sure that you have your priorities straight is going to help with that,” she said. “I think VMI fosters that shared suffering of everyone doing the same thing. No one wants to wake up at 7 a.m. every day. But it shows that we’re a little bit more responsible, and it instills those characteristics.”

Behind the Balance: Colin Blandford ’26 — Men’s Keydet Soccer

Becoming one of the co-captains of Virginia Military Institute’s men’s soccer team, Colin Blandford ’26 didn’t expect to carry so much weight. It was a stark contrast to him serving as captain in high school.

“I took a lot more responsibility than I thought,” he said. “It’s nothing like what I actually thought.”

It meant meetings, engaging with people he hadn’t expected, boosting morale, spreading the message of their coach, and more. He said, as a captain, you’re acting as the liaison between the commandant staff and the team.

“There are different issues that arise every day, because there’s so much going on here,” he said. “You’re advocating for somebody one day, you’re trying to figure out a new rule, sign-outs, how things are going to work, and you’re working with the coach as well to make sure that the team is successful on the field .”

Blandford said he puts in extra time talking with his coach to ensure his messages are properly portrayed to the team.

“I think the biggest thing I picked up on is how much more communication and my input are valued — a lot more than I thought,” he said.

It’s added to the responsibility as a team player and puts a heavier load on him as a cadet, but that’s the VMI way, he added.

“Honestly, you’re so forced to be on a schedule here, and they teach you so well how to manage your time and how your whole day is structured that it hasn’t been too hard,” he said. “You go to practice in the morning, go to school all day, go to practice in the afternoon again, then after dinner, the rest of your night is for homework. That’s kind of the schedule I follow every day.”

Structure is what he needed.

“I chose VMI because I knew a normal college wouldn’t have suited me well, just based off how I was in high school,” Blandford said. “I knew that if I wanted to be serious about playing sports, that I need to be somewhere where structure was built in.”

Learning proper communication has become a skill that Blandford relies on. He’s traveling a lot during the season, which means missing classes.

“I’d say a lot of the problems that I ran into in my earlier years were solved just through communicating with my teachers more effectively,” he said. “The teachers here are very understanding of obligations and especially understanding of time management, because everybody here is strained for time. This year, I’ve noticed that it’s not as difficult to keep up my work, as I found in the past, and that’s based just off communication.”

Blandford, an English major with a minor in business, has 18 and a half credits this semester, which means he must stay on top of his studies. With a heavy load of classes on Tuesdays and Thursdays, he spends the rest of the week tackling most of his work.

Colin Blandford kicks the soccer ball on the field during a Virginia Military Institute men' soccer game.

Finding his goal

Blandford has been playing soccer since he was three years old. He played several sports growing up, but soccer was the one that stuck out — it was the one he excelled at. He likes the constant flow of action and how the game can change in just seconds. Mainly, he likes being part of the team.

“As the years progressively go on, I think being part of the team is amazing. Those are my best friends,” he said. “I spend the most time with them. It’s huge that this group gets along. It’s a tiny school, so you see them at school all day. You go to sports with them all day. You live with them.”

He credits his coach for bringing the group together.

“All the guys within the group have done a great job of taking care of each other and buying into what we’re trying to do,” he said.

Behind the Balance: Gretal Shank ’25 — Keydet Cross Country

Gretal Shank ’25 started running cross country when she was in seventh grade. She almost quit two weeks in.

“I didn’t like it,” she admitted. “It was hard, but then I realized I was pretty good at it, so I stuck with it and did it all through high school. I did pretty well, I’m still running.”

She averages running 30 to 40 miles a week. During that time, she treats it as meditation. Shank, an English major, says she spends her runs sometimes formulating stories.

“I’m also a writer. I do a lot of my thinking about ideas for what I’m going to write, while I run, also just ideas for anything,” she said. “I got a lot of time on my hands.”

During the harder workouts, though, she’s not thinking about anything.

“I think a big part of it is mental. It gives me a mental break in the middle of the day. I get a lot of my thinking done while I’m running,” she said. “Also, it keeps me fit, obviously. It gives me goals to work on, from personal goals to team-oriented goals. A big aspect of that is teamwork, but it’s also an individual sport.”

She applied to West Point, but didn’t get in, so she shifted to VMI. Without even seeing post first, she decided to commit. It took one call to the cross country coach for her to get on the team with a partial scholarship.

“I wanted a college experience that wasn’t going to be ordinary,” Shank said. “But it initially started whenever I was looking into commissioning, because my parents are both in the military.”

With plans of commissioning into the U.S. Army, Shank’s days are filled and regimented — much like other cadets at VMI. The schedule she keeps ensures she’s able to get all her tasks done. On top of a sport, she’s taken a heavy credit load her entire time at VMI — taking 20 credits this semester, three of which are dedicated to her honor’s thesis. Due to her psychology minor, she must tack on six more classes to fulfill requirements.

Gretal Shank running cross country for Virginia Military Institute.

Her academic schedule is packed. Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays, she has five or six classes, then heads to practice from 3:30 to 7 p.m. Tuesdays and Thursdays, she has Army ROTC lab and classes.

The continuous activity is something Shank likes. Besides being a DI athlete and having cadet responsibilities, she’s the visual editor for Cadence, the Institute’s fine arts publication. She also works at the VMI Writing Center and is the president of Sigma Tau Delta, the International English Honor Society.

“I think for me, it might make it easier. I haven’t known any different, but I think it’s easier because I have a consistent schedule,” she said.

Each day has a specific schedule that Shank doesn’t deter from. When it comes to a slower day or a day off, she often doesn’t know what to do with herself. She needs constant activity to push her along.

“I find that on days that I don’t have practice, which is pretty rare, I actually don’t get more work done,” she said.

VMI has kept her busy and helped create a lifestyle of structure, she said. She needs to have a designated time for everything, otherwise she’d get nothing done.

“Honestly, the busier I am, the more I will be able to get done, because otherwise it’s easier for me to just be lazy,” she admitted. “I’ve kind of run into that problem on Tuesdays and Thursdays a little bit to where I just kind of want to relax, because my Monday, Wednesday, Fridays are so busy, but it’s been fun. I’ve gotten all the work done that I need to get done, so that’s what matters.”

Behind the Balance: Ty Swaim ’24 — Keydet Baseball

Ty Swaim ’24 didn’t want a lot of debt coming out of college and he knew one way for him to attain a good education was through a baseball scholarship. Virginia Military Institute wasn’t even a place he was thinking of until he was recruited to play for the Keydets.

He said ultimately, he based his decision on attending VMI for the opportunity to play baseball, the trust he had with the coaching staff, and the expectations they had for him. But also, it was based on the financial opportunity it presented.

Coming from a lower income household, he knew he had to get some sort of financial help, which he was able to with a combination of a baseball scholarship and financial aid.

“Coming in here, it was the closest thing to a full scholarship that I could have gotten, especially for baseball, which is extremely tough to get,” he said.

He also knew choosing to pursue VMI’s economic and business degree would work greatly for him.

“The degree has a huge weight and significance,” he said.

Being able to continue his love of baseball was a plus. His grandfather played professional baseball and his parents were heavily involved in athletics.

“I feel like I always had a T-ball bat or a plastic bat in my hands,” he said.

Playing sports has always been in his inventory.

“It just so happened that baseball was the only one I was half decent at,” he joked. “If I wanted to go to college, it was the only one that I was good enough to play Division I, so that’s kind of how that worked. I love baseball more than anything.”

Swaim was drawn to baseball because of its competitiveness, combining both a team sport aspect and individual skill – competing as an individual on a team basis.

“You’re working with your teammates, but a lot of it boils down to individual things where you have the bat on your shoulders,” he said. “You have the ball in your hand where you can get the job done. I know from a hitter’s perspective, when you’re in the box, you’re kind of in a war with the pitcher. It’s just you guys. When you’re on defense, when the ball’s hit, it’s a team sport. You can go help out your pitcher, you can go make a play.”

Days start early for Swaim, especially when he’s in season. He’s up most days at 5:15 a.m. to lift weights from 6 to 7:15 a.m. Then he rushes to grab breakfast to-go, so he can head back to his room, shower, change, put his hay up, and get ready for class.

His schedule varies for certain days — Tuesdays and Thursdays he has class at 8 a.m. Wednesdays and Fridays, he doesn’t have class until 12:35 p.m. He uses his time wisely, though. On his free mornings, he spends them completing homework to get ahead, because he’s usually down on the field for more practice by 2:30 p.m. daily.

This last semester is a bit different than years past. His previous years had been back-to-back classes then straight to practice. Now, as a 1st Class cadet, he’s given more of a break.

His goal is to finish his homework during the week, so he can travel on the weekends or play at home for baseball.

Ty Swaim swings a baseball bat during a Virginia Military Institute baseball game.

“I try to set up all my schoolwork to be done within that week because I know on the weekends, I just want to focus on baseball,” he said. “I know my brain is not going to be in the classroom, so I do all my schoolwork during the day.”

His top priority right now is finishing strong for baseball. He feels that VMI has prepared him to come out on top in his sport, but also has prepared him for whatever life throws at him after graduation in May.

“The busier I am, oddly enough, the better I am. This school doesn’t really let up,” he said. “The schoolwork in the past has been extremely tough … when you have three tests a day, it gets crazy. When I was super busy with really hard classes and heavy course loads, I ended up getting better grades because there was absolutely zero time for free time. Sometimes I think I work well in that just because when I do get free time, I tend to slack off.”

He doesn’t take those slivers of days off for granted. His time at VMI has taught him to savor the downtime and treat it as a reward for working hard, and to acknowledge stress not necessarily being a bad thing.

“Having stress isn’t bad, just being able to understand the stress and use it,” he said. “I think stress gets a bad rap, which obviously when you are stressed it’s terrible. Everything brings you stress. But it gives you things to do, keeps your mind busy and things for you to work on. If there was no stress at all, I don’t know that would be a very fun world to live in. No challenges to get over, there’s nothing to focus on, there’s no goals to meet.”

Swaim admits he still has room to grow and isn’t quite sure of his next steps following graduation. But, VMI has created a great path for him.

“I think I’ve matured a lot since I’ve been here. Of course, I think there’s still so much more I can learn,” he said.

His priorities for the spring — baseball and living in the moment. This is his last chance to play on a large scale.

“I really want to focus on baseball and just ending on a good note. I have spent so much time in my life on it,” he said.

Behind the Balance: Kyle Webster ’24 — Keydet Lacrosse

Leadership and regiment have been ingrained into Kyle Webster ’24 since beginning his time at Virginia Military Institute. Choosing a military college wasn’t his first choice, but with an offer to play lacrosse and a best friend from home also attending, those were big incentives.

He’s been playing lacrosse since he was 7 years old.

“I fell in love with it,” he said. “It’s a fast pace. People say it’s the fastest game on a field. The physicality and the thrill of scoring a goal or picking up a big ground ball is just awesome.”

Going to high school in Alexandria, Virginia, he played in one of the top three high school conferences in the country. The sport was incredibly popular in his area, but he was the first in his family to play it.

For his 1st Class year at VMI, Webster was voted as one of the team captains, alongside A.J. Stamos ’24 and Diego Markie ’25.

“I’m anywhere from motivation of the team to just checking in on guys,” he said about his role as captain. “I try to make sure that I have a great relationship and a friendship with every single person on the team. I can be that guy that anyone can come to for their problems or just want to talk. I’m trying to lead on the field, by example, and play the right way.”

Webster and Stamos grew up and have played lacrosse together since they were kids. Webster said it’s been a big motivation, having a friend like that on the team.

“It was kind of cool to have that full circle moment, since we’ve both played lacrosse together since we were seven. Then we come to college and we’re both captains,” he said.

In his last semester, he perfected the balance of academics and athletics. Although, he admits it was challenging.

For him, time management is what helps him. He’s also doing schoolwork between classes, which helps.

“I just make time for the important things,” he said. “This is a school, most importantly, so you must find time to do academics. When I was younger, I was taking more credits. I struggled at times.”

Now that he’s about to graduate, managing his time has become easier. Plus, he’s not taking a heavy load — he’s currently enrolled in 15 credits, compared to his average of 18 credits.

Days are regimented, as to be expected. He gets up at 6:45 a.m., eats, and heads to one morning class Mondays, Wednesdays, and Fridays. After class and until lunch, he’ll do schoolwork. Then after lunch he has three classes back-to-back, which brings him right to practice at 3:30 p.m. Practice is over at 6 p.m., so he’s off to dinner then back to his room for studying and then bed. He aims to go to bed at 10:30 p.m. every night.

“Sleep is very important,” he said.

Tuesdays and Thursdays he has one class in the morning and the rest of the day is spent working out, doing schoolwork, or hanging out before he needs to head to practice. Practice is six days a week, he said.

The economics and business major doesn’t plan on commissioning after graduation. Instead, he recently accepted a job with a government contracting firm out of the D.C. area called SteerBridge Strategies where he will be a project analyst.

He said his time at VMI has been a humbling experience, especially coming in thinking you’re the best. He says the first day, you find out you’re not, but instead you experience unity between your brother rats.

“I think that one of the best aspects of VMI is that everyone gets humbled, and you’re part of something bigger than yourself,” he said. “I feel like I’ve grown in that aspect, to see that it’s bigger than what the eye sees.”

Webster also found that accountability is a big factor, along with structure.

“Having a routine and structure in your life is very important. I feel like this place gets you ready for the real world … you have to be productive and efficient. That’s the main thing that you learn here at VMI,” he said.

Behind the Balance: Devin Butler ’24 — Keydet Basketball

Devin Butler ’24 doesn’t remember a time when there wasn’t a basketball in his hands. He may not have been able to dribble it as a baby, but it was there.

“Ever since I can remember, I’ve always had a basketball,” the English major said.

His father was a basketball player, then his brother grew up loving it. Once Butler was born, he said his brother was determined to make him a teammate. So, by the time he could walk, he could dribble a ball.

While attending The Phelps School outside Philadelphia for high school, Butler wasn’t too interested in attending a military college like Virginia Military Institute. Coaches from VMI had been reaching out to his high school coaches, but he didn’t bite.

“After the visit I could see how connected the people were here, especially the team,” he said. “It was totally different from any other visit I did. I had no question about it, I chose VMI.”

This semester — his final one — he’s at 12 credits. Although it’s a lighter load than other semesters, he still has booked days throughout the week.

“It does get tough here because of the military aspect of the school, along with academics and basketball,” he said. “I try to find time to pray and center myself religiously, and then to meditate to really be in tune with myself and appreciate all the madness that comes along. Because school is being paid for; I’m totally blessed. I couldn’t have it any better. So sometimes I need to just take time to stop and appreciate that and live in the moment really.”

Getting up at 6 a.m. daily to hit the weight room by 6:20 a.m. is the norm for Butler. From there, it’s breakfast and onto classes. By noon, he’s got a break where he can grab lunch to-go from Crozet, take a quick nap, then back to classes until about 2 p.m. From there, he’ll head back to the weight room for an hour, then do some skill work for almost an hour before practice starts at 4 p.m. Then it’s on to dinner and back to barracks. He’s usually doing schoolwork a bit at night but has been keeping up with studies during his regular day.

Devin Butler about to shoot a basketball during a Virginia Military Institute men's basketball game.

He said being on the basketball team really helps with any stress the day brings.

But now, he’s more nostalgic. Finishing up his last semester, he feels like he can look back and appreciate the trials and tribulations he endured at VMI because it allowed him to become the leader he is now.

“Now that I’m a 1st Class cadet, I can sit back and appreciate what the school has done for me, how much it has allowed and helped me to grow,” he said. “I’ve become a better leader. This team, this environment has kind of just sprang me into the leader I want to be when I leave here.”

VMI has helped Butler’s confidence tremendously, he said. From starting as a rat, breaking out and becoming a 4th Class cadet, to receiving rings, and heading for matriculation.

“All the things that you have to go through here … you have to find when everybody in the world tells you that you’re nothing, you have to find within yourself to say no, I am something,” he said. “So that was kind of my thing throughout the Ratline. I was like, it’s not going to break me. I know I’m worth something. Then as the years have gone by, I’ve seen that resiliency grow. And no matter the issue, no matter the challenge that VMI has thrown me, I’ve been able to kind of take it on.”

That dedication and resiliency is something he can take with him outside of VMI. After graduating, he plans on attending graduate school.

“That battle helped me to spring past my peers, because I’ll be able to take the adversity that life throws at you and know how to handle it,” he said.

Tag: Behind the Balance