Jayda Kilian has proven herself to be an impressive athlete at Medford Public School. Jayda is a sophomore at Medford and has grown up playing sports. She has been participating in basketball, softball, and track since she was in first grade.

She credits her young athletic involvement to her mom, who encouraged her to pursue sports. “When I was younger I thought sports looked so fun and I always wanted to try them out for myself so one day I did, and I loved them. My momma also always pushed me and wanted to see me succeed because she wanted me to be good and I’ll always thank her for that.”

What has kept her in the athletic realm is the love that she has found for the sports she plays. “Sports are definitely one of my favorite ways to cope, especially when I’m really stressed out. Sports are really just my safe place to get away from all the stress and do something I love.”

Because she became involved in sports at such a young age, Jayda has learned many important lessons during her time as an athlete. One of the biggest lessons she has learned is the importance of perseverance. “I’ve learned that losing isn’t always a bad thing, it has taught me to become stronger and push myself a lot harder next time. Sports have also really motivated me to never give up and it takes time in order for you to accomplish your goals.”

“My advice to anyone who wants to get involved in any of my sports,” Jayda shares, “is you need to be patient with the sport you choose to do because it takes time before you see the best results. Effort and determination is key to meeting your goal in sports, you can’t come out with false hopes, you have to come out and have fun with it and think about all the positive aspects of the game and your skills.”