A: I was always a sports person. I think I learned how to ski before I learned how to walk … I was around 6 or 7 and it was summer and you know, you can’t really ski during the summer, unless you go train, which I did until I was 14. My aunt and uncle played golf, and my brother used to motorbike. So me and my mom were just tired of going with them. So we just went and golfed a couple of times. I liked the environment. From then on, I took it sort of like a hobby. And then I was 14 and my mom and dad were like, ‘You have to make a decision at some point because you can’t keep spending the summer trying to go skiing for two weeks and then you’re missing on training for golf, and in the winter you also want to train for golf.’ So I had to make a choice, and I chose golf.

A: It takes sacrifices for sure. It’s not easy. You see people that have free time, go out, have fun. We have fun in a different way. But we wake up at 6 a.m. almost every day, and it’s a grind. Just being part of a team is what makes it more fun. I think it’s harder to retain the love for a sport if you’re not performing well. But when you have a team that’s around you and you can have fun with the team, and you’re part of such a big community as the athletic community at Georgia, it’s so nice. And we don’t have college sports in Italy, so it was either, come to college in the U.S. or decide what you want to do, and I was not ready to make a choice. And even now, I don’t really know if I’m ready, and I think it’s because I still love the game and I still love to play.

A: I was used to seeing my swing coach twice a week, and now I go six months without seeing him. It takes adjustments. Sometimes you realize that maybe the coach that you had was not what you needed right now, and it also gets really stressful in college because you have to be performing every week, and you’re competing at such a high level. Back in Europe, the level is super high. But you go back from a tournament, and you see your swing coach, you see your family, and you go back to high school. Here I’m so far away from my family ... I had a flat tire yesterday, and if I were at home, I would be like, “Hey Dad, what do I do,” and I called him, and I was like: “What do you want me to do? I’m like across the ocean.”

A: (During COVID) having so many teammates from different parts of the world kind of made us go through it together … I didn’t go home one Christmas because of COVID. I stayed here with one of my teammates. So that was really nice to have someone here that could help you. But I think being so far from home and not being the only one that’s going through being so far from home is helpful.

A: I think this year we have six seniors, including me, on the team. So it’s hard to be a very vocal leader because I feel like everyone is there, and they know what to do. They know what is required, and I think you just need to lead by example and by supporting each other. You also need to lead by showing your emotions and showing that you’re happy, but you’re also vulnerable and being vulnerable with one another is what makes you grow as a better team.

A: I definitely go in hoping that our team is going to have a good strong performance. I think I’m not going to have high expectations because I’ve done that before. And it’s sort of like if you go for your expectation you did what you were supposed to and if you don’t succeed then it’s awful. So I just think, thinking more about the process of each shot and just analyzing the results at the end and not as the tournament is going and making it to nationals. And last year, we made a run for the title and it was really fun. So I think that’s one of our goals.

A: Since growing up, Lindsey Vonn has always been my idol. Because I was a skier so she’s always been the biggest idol I had, and she’s always fought so hard. I think our sport still has a lot of steps to make. And skiing is a really good sport for women too, but golf and other sports still have a lot to make. I got to meet a lot of people that came before me on this team, and it was honestly very inspiring. It made me realize that what we have right now we have to be extremely grateful. They didn’t have a locker room. …And they really just were happy with what they had. Sometimes we complain that we don’t like one shirt that we’re going to wear that day, and they were just having to do laundry every night. So they really inspired me. I don’t know if you know Beans Kelly. She was a coach here, player, played for Liz (Murphey) and then was a coach, and I got to meet her a bunch of times, and she reminded me that like it’s overall supposed to be fun. It’s not your job yet. You’re here, yes, you’re supposed to train and work hard, but at the end it’s supposed to be fun. And I think that meant a lot to me ... So it’s really inspiring when people come back and teach the younger generation, and I hope that one day I’ll come back and there will be something even better here.