close

Conko benefits from change in attitude

By Jim Downey 4 min read

A change of attitude and outlook as a junior not only affected Caitlin Conko’s performance in the classroom, but also spilled over into the volleyball court as well with the Geibel Catholic scholar-athlete elevating her game in both aspects of her life. “I didn’t take school seriously, at all,” said Conko. “I told myself ‘Maybe if I study I’ll do a little better midway through my junior year.’ I knew I wasn’t trying my best. I can’t be happy with a C. My volleyball changed, too.

“I’m glad I’m taking that (attitude) into college.”

Conko, the daughter of Stephen and Colleen Conko, was selected as the top female student/athlete at Geibel Catholic High School and will receive a $500 scholarship through the Fayette County Student/Athlete Scholarship Program.

The program, sponsored by Davis and Davis Attorneys at Law in conjunction with the Herald-Standard, will provide $7,000 in scholarship money to 14 of Fayette County’s best and brightest student/athletes.

A banquet will culminate the program on Thursday, May 12, at 6 p.m. at Uniontown Country Club. At that time, each of 14 honorees will receive $500 toward a college education. HSTV will videotape the program for tape-delayed broadcast.

Conko is the third generation to attend the Catholic school in Connellsville with her maternal grandfather an Immaculate Conception alum and her mother, aunt and two uncles Geibel Catholic grads. Her mother played volleyball and basketball for the Lady Gators while her uncle Ed Staines played baseball and basketball and uncle Brian Staines a three-sport athlete, including a record-breaking season at quarterback.

She actually was part of the Lady Gator volleyball squad long before she entered Geibel Catholic because her mother coached the team between Kathy Hillen and Rick Watkins when she was in preschool.

It was wise words from her mother and Uncle Brian that helped turn her scholar-athlete life around.

“They wished they would have applied themselves more in sports and school,” said Conko. “I learned you can’t be reserved. You can’t sit around and wait for stuff to come back to you.

“I was a 5 foot, four inch volleyball player. They usually don’t play in the front row. I worked for it, got my vertical leap up.”

Conko is ranked 12th in her class with a GPA of 3.85.

Hillen has the pleasure of coaching both Conko and her mother in volleyball. She saw the change the younger Conko described in her junior year.

“In 8th-grade CYO volleyball at Conn-Area Catholic, I said no way. The conversion started in her sophomore year,” explained Hillen. “After that sophomore year, she blossomed. Things started to click.”

As for watching the mother-daughter play for her, Hillen said, “It was fun to watch the generations progress. Caitlin made the WPIAL finals (as a senior) and the last time the team did that was when her mother played (in 1982).”

Conko will look to continue her scholastic as well as her athletic career at Denison University, a NCAA Division III school in Ohio, hoping to make the volleyball team as a walk-on.

“It’s a small school. I’ve been used to that my whole life,” Conko said of her decision. “It has a strong academic record. I plan to major in chemistry and hope to be a pharmacist.”

As for her classroom influences, Conko said, “I always liked chemistry. Mr. Bloom was hard to get used to, but I learned more chemistry that year. I loved Mr. Orlando. It’s just something about him.”

Conko embarks on a new chapter of her life taking good thoughts and memories with her.

“Kathy Hillen tells me how I remind her of my mother,” said Conko. “My mom always talked about how she loves to watch me play. She loves to play volleyball with me.”

CUSTOMER LOGIN

If you have an account and are registered for online access, sign in with your email address and password below.

NEW CUSTOMERS/UNREGISTERED ACCOUNTS

Never been a subscriber and want to subscribe, click the Subscribe button below.

Starting at $4.79/week.

Subscribe Today