By Ashley Napier

This July, three players from the Kentucky Women?s Soccer Team embarked on a seven day journey that changed their lives forever. Junior Kelsey Fenix, sophomore Kate Hughes and redshirt freshman Laura Speer took part in the Athletes in Action Ultimate Training Experience in Colorado.

The mission of Athletes in Action is to boldly proclaim the love and truth of Jesus Christ to those uniquely impacted by sports worldwide. The specific goal of the Ultimate Training Experience is to have athletes from around the world come together for seven days to gain biblical perspective on such topics as motivation, attitude, persevering through tough times and winning and losing.

There are approximately 120 ? 140 campers from across the United States competing against each other in a number of sports while practicing the word of God. On this particular trip, seven students represented the University of Kentucky.

For these three women, the seven days spent together in Colorado not only strengthened them physically and mentally in their sport, but in their lives as well.

?It?s hard to verbalize our experience,? Speer said.

?We share a bond because we actually went through this experience together,? Fenix added.

Throughout the seven days the student-athletes are taught different principles to play and live by each day.

?The most important principle I took from UTE was the Audience of One (AO1). The basic principle is that all we do on and off the field is for God. We are simply on his stage,? said Speer. ?Compared to what Jesus did for us on the cross, I can make that small sacrifice and play for Him.?

?The experience was definitely cool because I never looked at God and soccer together. We learned how to glorify God while we are playing,? said Hughes. ?Before games Laura will yell out to me and Kelsey ?AO1? to remind us to play for God.?

For all three women the most important part of the seven days was ?The Special.? The Special is 24 hours of sports with minimal sleep. The basic principle behind The Special is to compete on a number of different teams through a variety of sports. At the end of the 24 hour event the campers take part in the ?Golgotha.?

?The Golgotha is the hill Jesus carried the cross up. All of the campers run up the hill with the cross on their back,? said Fenix. ?The goal is for the campers to be mentally and physically drained so they can?t do it by themselves. Therefore they have to look to God for help.?

?The Golgotha challenged us to look to God for everything,? said Hughes.

Fenix, Hughes and Speer are all considering the possibilities of taking part in more Athletes for Action camps. Fenix would like to travel all over the world with AIA ministries and Speer would consider taking part depending on where her travels would take her. Hughes would also like to take part in camp again, but this time around she would like to be a leader instead of a camper.

Overall the three women are challenged each day in their lives on and off the soccer field. Their experience together has created a bond that cannot be broken. The women work together to practice the principles learned in camp everyday.

?We are still learning how to play for God. We try to remember that when we are playing our sport we are playing for God,? said Hughes. ?For me, I have the other two girls to help me remember and show me the way.?

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