Hiland’s Morgan Yoder a leader on court, in classroom

Hiland’s Morgan Yoder a leader on court, in classroom
Dave Mast

In the classroom Morgan Yoder excelled just as she did on the court. She boasted a 4.05 GPA and was president of the National Honor Society.

                        

Hiland graduating senior Morgan Yoder is well known for her prowess on the basketball court. A two-time All-Ohioan who this past season led the Lady Hawks to a state title, she has been the floor general for four years for one of Dave Schlabach's most accomplished classes.

However, she isn’t just a star on the court. She also excels in the classroom, where she has fashioned a 4.05 GPA and served as the Hiland High School National Honor Society president this past year.

Whether it is in the class or on the court, Yoder proves there is room in a young adult’s life for both education and athletics, and she has worked hard to make sure neither got pushed aside as she strived to be the very best at whatever task she faced.

“Something that really motivates me is that I want to be the best in any area, no matter what that might be,” Yoder said. “I think that stemmed from when I was younger, when I realized that I just needed to work harder than everyone else to get to where I wanted to be.”

Yoder said as a youngster she had perfect examples of how to live and work hard from her parents, both of them playing key roles in teaching her to strive to be the best at every challenge she faced, whether it was on the court, in the classroom or in anything she tried to tackle. She said her mother Cindy was one of those people who worked so hard and taught her work ethic.

Her attention to detail is something she attributes to her dad, Merle, and her meticulousness to detail has been a big reason she has experienced great success in her life.

She laughed when thinking back to elementary school when she would be working on her Valentine’s Day card box and her dad would lovingly offer advice on how to fix something on the box to make it even better.

“Even in something like that, I wanted to make the best Valentine’s Day box possible, and he would always be right there helping me make it better,” Yoder said. “I definitely got that sense of attention to detail from him.”

She went on to admit there are many areas in her life where she is a perfectionist. She said that perfectionist attitude plays well in both the classroom and on the basketball court, where attention to detail and doing all of the little things properly add up to success.

“There are certain things I feel that I need to do to be successful, and repetition is one of those things. That I believe has helped me excel in both the classroom and on the basketball court,” Yoder said.

She also credited the East Holmes teaching staff for their dedication and the time they spent shaping and forming not just her, but all students.

“We are very blessed to have some amazing teachers here,” Yoder said. “They not only teach us, but they also care about us outside the classroom, caring about what is going on in our lives. They do an excellent job of leading and teaching us and working with us even after school, and they can see when kids are willing to put in the extra work, and they then push us even harder to excel.”

Yoder also has taken on a mentorship role for younger basketball players, from her younger teammates to the girls’ biddy ball program, and she relished the idea of instilling that same work ethic into younger kids.

“When I was younger, I had people like that in my life, and I want to be that type of person who is willing to help others grow,” Yoder said.

Yoder said another driving factor in her life has been being afforded the opportunity to be around the students at Hiland who had learning disabilities. She said seeing how hard they worked and how much joy they have in life helped shape her life and motivate her, and it also helped her realize what she wants to pursue for a career.

“I’ve been blessed to be a part of Mrs. (Michelle) Mishler’s class, and I see how hard they work, and it is inspiring,” Yoder said. “Seeing them do well at school and seeing how grateful they are to be in school has given me a much better perspective in life, and they’ve taught me that I need to be grateful for everything, every day. I really feel like her students have helped push me toward working in that field someday.”

She said one other thing that has been a driving force in her life has been her faith. Yoder was never one to trash talk on the court and is described by others as being incredibly respectful to everyone.

“The way I feel love in my faith, I want other people to see that through me,” Yoder said. “I’ve always felt that my faith has given me a sense of calmness, whether I’m on the court or taking a test, knowing that there are bigger things than those moments.”

In leaving her mark at Hiland, Yoder said she wants to be remembered for being nice to everyone and helping others grow by making an impact in their lives in small ways every day.

When asked to describe herself with one word, Yoder chose “thoughtful.”

Yoder is the daughter of Merle and Cindy Yoder. She will attend Ashland University next year and play basketball while majoring in education, both in k-5 and intervention.


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