MCC Former Athletes: Annabella Bara
In life, much of what makes a person who they are includes the challenges, journeys, and places they have experienced. With one different turn or decision, life may be drastically different from what it was meant to be.
As an athlete, picking the correct program to attend can either spell doom for your career, or push you to levels you never thought possible.
For Annabella Bara, a former standout forward for the Mesa Community College women’s soccer team, becoming a Thunderbird opened up many doors, as well as helped her grow as a player and person.
In her two seasons at MCC, Bara scored 35 goals, 3rd most in school history, earned 74 points, tied for 5th in school history, and was named to the All-ACCAC or All-Region I first team in both years.
However, the most valuable skill Bara learned at MCC might not have been perfecting a kick or header past a diving keeper. It might just be the interpersonal skills she developed during her time on a magical finals run in 2021.
“Leadership skills and the importance of keeping relationships with people. How to lead a diverse group of people with different backgrounds and encourage them to be confident to take on leadership,” said Bara when talking about something she took pride in during her time at MCC.
Getting something out of college while being an athlete is important.
For some, once that final horn goes off, your collegiate athletic career is over and the last thing you want to show for it is stats in the scorebook and getting nothing out of the sport you love besides mere memories.
While at MCC, Bara made sure to tap into her connection with head coach Andrew Guarneri to help make sure her connection to the game she loves lives on longer than her playing career ever will.
“My relationship with Coach Drew has gotten me a lot of coaching opportunities which is something I was looking to get into at Mesa,” said Bara, “I was just never able to find my footing.”
Bara currently coaches a club team in her spare time.
After her time at MCC, Bara decided to attend Ottawa University. In her first season, Bara has shined and helped the team to their best season in program history en route to a Golden State Athletic Conference finals appearance.
Bara was tied for the most goals on her team with eight, and was tied for sixth most goals in the conference.
