Bell and Guerrero end fall athletic careers
They toiled for four years.
This is a special edition of the College Report. Today, instead of bringing you information on multiple athletes, we have an article featuring just two athletes, Rachel Bell and Maribel Guerrero. Bell recently finished her NCAA Division I cross country career with Iowa State University, while Guerrero finished her volleyball career at Rockford College.
We are, however, looking for names for the winter and spring months. If anyone wants to add a name to my growing list, please e-mail me (Dan62801@aol.com). I will need the name of the athlete, the former high school, the college/university they are attending and, of course, the sport they are playing. There are only two rules to be included in this column. The athlete must be a member of an intercollegiate team, and they must be a resident or a graduate of one of the high schools normally covered by The Leader-Union.
For now sit back and read about two athletes that gave it their all for four years.
RACHEL BELL
Running is in Rachel Bell’s blood. Literally.
So is being a NCAA Division I athlete. Both Bell’s mother and father, Dave and Jane Bell, were Division I athletes, and so is her younger brother, Drew, who runs for the University of Illinois.
The Vandalia grad, who recently completed her cross country career at Iowa State University, had her best individual year in 2008. She scored as part of Iowa State’s top five at the Roy Griak Invitational and the Big 12 Conference Cross Country Championships. She completed the 6,000-meter race at Roy Griak in 23:12. At the Big 12 Conference outing, she finished the 6,000-meter race in 25:05.
“One thing I loved about cross country is the different scenery and terrains that we competed on,” Bell said. “The distance was a little far. I am more of a 3,000-meter runner.”
During her cross country career, she witnessed the Cyclones go from a team that was ninth in the Big 12 Conference in 2006, her freshman year, to a team that finished eighth in the NCAA Division I nationals in 2010.
“To be here when that level of improvement happened was great,” she said. “It was something tangible that you could see.”
Bell spent most of the 2010 cross country season recovering from surgery for exertional compartment syndrome, a condition in which the membrane surrounding her calf muscles were too tight. During exercise, that pressure cut off the blood supply to her calves. She has been working out and preparing for her final season of track. Bell will run the 1,500-meter, the 3,000-meter and possibly the 3,000-meter steeplechase, an event for which she held the ISU record for two years.
“I love running and don’t plan on stopping,” Bell said. “I hope to still be running when I am a grandmother. But, the injury was terrible. I could do normal things, like walking, and be unaffected. I tried to run through it and it took the medical professionals some time to figure out what was wrong with me.”
Bell will graduate in May with not only a bachelor’s degree, but a master’s degree in diet and exercise. The five-year program at Iowa State allows the student to pursue both at the same time. Her immediate future plans include doing an internship focusing on the diets of college athletes. She eventually wants to work at a college as its dietician.
“I want this to be my best track season, ever,” Bell said. “At the very least, I would like to run the times I had run previously. That would really put a great ending on my career. If I had to make choice again, I would still chose to run for Iowa State. I took my shot at competing at this level, and I am happy that I did.”
MARIBEL GUERRERO
Maribel Guerrero, a St. Elmo grad and Rockford College senior, has quite a bit of planning to do in the next six months.
She does not know if she will pursue a graduate degree or look for a job. But, Guerrero walks away from the sport of volleyball, knowing at least one thing: she has the respect of every one of her teammates. Guerrero, who played for Kaskaskia College, prior to starring for the Lady Regents, was named captain of her various teams three times.
“My teammates voted for me to be a captain,” said Guerrero. “It was a honor that they thought so much of me.”
In her two years at Rockford, Guerrero had one job: play defense. The defensive specialist/libero finished with 663 digs in her final two years. She also had 42 assists, 26 service aces and five kills in her two years. In her final year, Guerrero finished with 300 digs in 24 matches. She also had 18 aces, 16 assists and three kills. She had 490 digs during her first two years at KC.
For her play on the volleyball court, she was named to the Great Rivers Athletic Conference team as a sophomore. She was also earned the KC Blue Angel Award, which is given to the player with the most spirit. She earned a first-year award at Rockford in 2009.
“After KC, I knew that I wanted to play two more years, but I did not like the uncertainty of not knowing where I would play,” Guerrero said. “That was a tough time for me. Socially, I got along much better with my teammates.”
While she was preventing teams from scoring, Rockford started improving in the Northern Athletics Conference. Overall, Rockford finished 7-17 in 2010. However, its NAC record was 6-6.
“We really jelled well at the end of the year,” Guerrero said of the 2010 team. “We found the right chemistry. I will miss playing, the competition and team.”
The daughter of Raquel and Pablo Guerrero of St. Elmo will earn her degree in Spanish in May. She was a GRAC All-Academic selection as a freshman. She is hoping to coach and will start as an assistant or volunteer coach.
“Volleyball has been part of my life for 10 years,” she said. “I would like to stay close to the sport.”