By Chloe Price ’24, special contributor
Graduating senior Abbie Hoffer is leaving LVC after four years of pursuing her bachelor’s degree in English and creative writing.
“I always knew I was going to be an English major,” Hoffer said. “The only thing I’ve consistently pursued and enjoyed in my life is telling stories. My goal was to find a way to make my fiction writing better while at the same time learning the skills needed to pursue a job writing or doing something creative.”
Hoffer came to LVC from Harrisburg, PA, graduating from Central Dauphin High School in 2019.
“When I was looking to transfer schools after my freshman year, [LVC] was one of the schools I toured again,” Hoffer mentioned. “I wanted something a little closer to home since I’d just been sent home from school to quarantine, and LVC provided me with the best scholarship of the places I had applied.”
Within the LVC campus, Hoffer is diversely involved––an author in the 2023 edition of “Green Blotter,” featured in the student-published collection “Bestiary,” an intern in LVC’s Marketing and Communication department and a teammate of the LVC women’s tennis team.
Tennis became a part of Hoffer’s life after her my mom signed me up for tennis when I was 10.
“I had recently quit gymnastics, and she told me I wasn’t allowed to just sit at home during the winters,” Hoffer recalled. “So, I started taking lessons during my off seasons, and when I stopped playing softball, tennis became my main sport. I made the team in high school and played all four years, and decided I wanted to try to play in college.”
Hoffer’s favorite part of tennis is the psychology of the sport.
“There’s a lot of strategy involved that requires you to think on your feet, and if you have a good mental game, you can achieve amazing things on the court. I have beaten people who were better players than me because I can keep a cool head even when the score isn’t in my favor. It’s fun getting to adapt and analyze in real-time in order to play the best possible game.”
On the other hand, Hoffer has a least favorite part of being a student-athlete.
“Trying to juggle everything I have going on,” Hoffer shared. “Especially senior year, I had to be very conscious of my time so I could split it between school, tennis, my internship and job searching while still managing to have time to socialize.”
Overall, Hoffer recalls, “…I’ve had a pretty positive experience on the LVC team, my game has improved significantly, and I’ve been a part of an incredible team of people.”
The team won the MAC championship for the second straight year.
“This was also our last chance to win the MAC since we’re changing conferences, so it’s nice to go out on top.”
As far as advice to future LVC tennis players, Abby has that too.
“Come to practice every day ready to work. It doesn’t matter what the rest of your day has been like or what you have to do that week,” Hoffer suggested. “Just step out onto the court and give it your all. Not every practice is going to be stellar for anyone but give it your all regardless.”