SAAC Spotlight - Lydia Clanton
Lydia Clanton
Southern Wesleyan
Softball
Sophomore
What is your hometown?
Waynesboro, Mississippi
Why did you choose your school?
I chose SWU because of my coach, but since I came here I have fallen in love with the community for so many reasons.
How did you choose your major?
I chose Exercise Science and a Psychology minor because I want to be a chiropractor. I want to specialize in athletes and usually athletes become injured, so I wanted to have the ability to understand what they are going through mentally as well as helping them physically.
What is your favorite class? Why?
My favorite class has been Anatomy and Physiology. We have one of the toughest professors that any college has for that class. You learn so much and feel really accomplished when you do well.
What is your dream job?
My dream job is to be a chiropractor for a major athletic team, such as an MLB or NFL team.
What advice would you give to an incoming freshman?
The advice that I would give is to be a high-achiever. It is important to expect the best from yourself so that you do well in hard classes. However, it’s important to understand that you can’t be perfect. Sometimes you won’t get that A, but always strive for it.
How many years have you been involved with SAAC?
This is only my third semester being involved in SAAC. I have been involved in other parts of campus life and I love creating events and working with people to build community.
What makes Conference Carolinas a great conference to be part of?
Conference Carolinas is very competitive, especially in softball. I love this conference because not only do they stress excellence in athletics, but they also want you to be excellent in the classroom and they really encourage us to be active in community service as well.
What does being a champion in body, mind, and soul mean to you?
To me it means that you are a champion in athletics, academics and your walk with Christ. Many schools or conferences may not emphasize academics or your spiritual life like Conference Carolinas and SWU does.
What is the most important thing you have learned from balancing the demands of athletics and academics?
The most important thing I’ve learned is that you have to be very driven in your sport. There will be many times where classes interfere with practice and you have to practice on your own or go much earlier or later than the rest of the team. You have to push yourself to limits so that you don’t let the team or your coaches down.
What is your most memorable moment as a student-athlete so far?
My most memorable moment as a student athlete was making it to our conference tournament and winning conference Freshman of the year. We ended up being in the conference championship game and I will never forget how it felt.
One thing people don't know about you is?
One thing people don’t know about me is that I have done DIY projects my whole life. I have helped my family redo many houses and I have done many different things such as painting, caulking, demo, etc.
What is a non-athletic talent that you have?
A non-athletic talent I have is piano. I took Piano lessons for eight years.
Favorite pump up song or music?
"Back in Black" by AC/DC. I love any classic rock song/band. I can name almost every song name and the band from the first few seconds of a song.