Tampa Catholic senior and USF signee Nicole Carroll didn't win her third straight pole vault state championship this year. Carroll who cleared 13'1.5" at the Millrose Games in New York, vaulted 12-0 and was runner-up behind Pole Vault City teammate Nati Sheppard of Ransom Everglades. However, Carroll's success in pole vault, as well as gymnastics, and in the classroom paid off in the form of a $10,000 scholarship from the AAU.
According to the organization the award, " is named after James E. Sullivan, a past President of the Amateur Athletic Union, and a pioneer in amateur sports. Based on the qualities of leadership, character and sportsmanship, the AAU High School Award goes far beyond athletic accomplishment and honors those with leadership skills, strong character as evidenced by his and her lifestyle as a whole.
We caught up with Carroll to talk about the selection process, what it means to her to win the award, and much more.
"It is awarded to one male and one female every year, followed by 8 smaller scholarships. The application for this scholarship included: athletic achievements, school GPA, volunteer work, and essay responses. (It was not easy!)."
How did you find out you had won?
I received the call from AAU unexpectedly as I was walking out the door to leave. To say that it caught me by complete surprise is an absolute understatement. I never, in a million years (literally), thought it was even possible for me to win. I know that I submitted my application understanding that scholarship awards would be given, but I honestly NEVER thought I would be the overall winner. When my gymnastics coach, Kevin Griffin, originally gave me the paperwork and suggested that I submit the application, even he tried to keep things realistic. He told me that I probably would not win, but maybe I would have a chance to be considered for a smaller award. SURPRISE!
I tried to refrain from screaming into the person’s ear on the other end of the phone. I am sure that I let out a few yelps, along with a few OMG’s and “I can’t believe it” ’s. My mom said that I was holding on to the counter like I was going to fall over, but I will not admit to that. I am so glad that I was home for the personal phone call. It was so much nicer to hear fantastic news like this from a human rather than just some type of electronic notification.
You've had a lot of success in your career, two state titles, a runner-up finish. What does this mean to you win this award?
Even though a few days have now gone by, this still seems like a dream. As I learn more and more about the Sullivan award and the amazing previous recipients I feel so incredibly honored to have my name added to that elite list.
The list of previous winners is pretty impressive. Talk about what it means to be amongst the likes of professional athletes and Olympians who have won before you.
Here are some of the previous winners: Peyton Manning (1997), Michael Phelps (2003), Tim Tebow (2007), Shawn Johnson (2008), Missy Franklin (2012) and dozens of others. This is absolutely the the most prestigious award I have ever won. As I was looking up this award, it was described as the "Oscar" of sports awards that is older than the Heisman. That just says it all!
I'm sure there were applicants who were smarter and more athletic than myself, but this award was not designed for that. This award was looking for a well rounded person, someone who can be dedicated to athletics while still maintaining good grades and finding time to give back to the community.
How do you plan to use the scholarship money? You can apply again in the future as well right?
The scholarship money goes directly into my college account so I have to use it on college expenses. I will probably end up using it later on to help pay for med school. I applied for the high school level of this award, but I can apply for the higher one later in my career. Actually a pole vaulter form the University of Akron (Shawn Barber) was in the final six this year.
