Sept. 8, 2011
Jenna Riddle is in her junior season at Nevada, after transferring from Arizona in 2008.
NAME: Jenna Riddle
Height: 5-10
Position: Goalkeeper
Hometown: Las Vegas, NV
The Wolf Pack soccer team will be fun to watch this year because: I have the opportunity to play this year!
For me to improve as a player I need to: Relax. Sometimes when I play, I can get really spastic and tense. I play the best when I'm relaxed, and make saves without even thinking about it.
My favorite pre-game ritual is: Blasting my music on my ipod and dancing around the locker room with the girls. Nothing gets me more pumped up than some good beats that make me want to rip someone's head off.
My teammates would best describe me as: A big goofball. I like to make any situation fun and keep everyone laughing all the time, even if it's at me.
The best place on campus is: The quad. Especially during the spring with all the trees blooming it's so pretty.
What I like most about my hometown is: The city's lights at night time. It's so bright and alive! I definitely miss that.
Favorite thing about being at Nevada is: The friends I've made and that were so close to places like Tahoe and San Fran if you need to get away for a weekend.
If I wasn't playing college soccer I would be: Going to school and working like a lot of other students.
A place I've never been but would love to visit: Bali. I saw it on the movie Eat, Pray, Love, and it looks really pretty there.
One moment in history I wish I could have seen: When Christopher Columbus first came to America. I want to see the real story of how everything went down between the Pilgrims and the Indians.
Favorite class: IS 201
Favorite food: Burritos. Breakfast or regular, the more food stuffed inside the better.
Least favorite food: Corn on the cob.
Favorite color: Pink!
Favorite movie: The Devil Wears Prada.
Favorite actor: Denzel Washington.
Favorite actress: Reese Witherspoon.
Favorite TV show: It's a tie between Law and Order SVU and Top Chef.
Most prized possession: My ipod. It got stolen last year and I nearly died going without listening to my jams.
Where I want to be 10 years from now: Working at Google or designing video games or something cool like that.
If I could add one team to the schedule it would be and why: Definitely University of Arizona. Since I transferred from there my sophomore year, it'd be pretty sweet to see my old teammates and even sweeter to beat the pants off of them.
Favorite singer or group: Eric Church.
I wear my number because: I picked the number 0 when I was younger because the goalkeeper for UNLV at the time who I looked up to, Jenna Huff, wore the same number. I wanted to be just like her since she played my position and had my same name, so obviously the number had to match. It's stuck with me ever since, and I love it!
Favorite song: From the Hood by Traxamillion.
Favorite junk food: Definitely doughnuts. A maple bar is my weakness.
Most impressive person you know: My Grandma. She is one of the hardest workers I know. She worked her way up to the top working for Mary Kay, and became very successful, yet she is still very humble and never stops working hard.
Person you would most like to trade places with for a day: No one. I love my life! But if I had to choose, it would probably be Dane Cook. I love making people laugh, and to be so hilarious that you can do that for a living would be pretty sweet.
Person who has most influenced your athletic career: My trainer from back home Tedd Girouard. He was always there for me and always believed in me. I definitely have to give him credit for making me a much faster, stronger, mentally tough player.
The best advice you have ever been given: It was after I had gotten blood clots and was having a hard time finding my confidence and playing again. I was told to believe in myself again. I was told that I can do anything I set my mind to and work hard at, and to not let anyone ever make me think I can't do something.
Why did you choose to attend Nevada: The beautiful campus and because of all of the fun things there are to do outdoors here like float the river, tahoe, snowboard, etc.
The best book I have ever read: The Twilight Series. When they first came out in high school, I read all four in like a week.
Something people would be surprised to know about me: I did ballet for like 12 years. It definitely didn't help with my grace or dancing abilities that's for sure. I was the tall, awkward looking one they always put in the back of the performances.
If I could have dinner with any two people it would be: My roommates, Erin Garvey and Annabelle Allen. We're always making memories together, and always cracking up at something. It's definitely a good ab workout when you put us three together.
My greatest athletic accomplishment to date is: Definitely earning a scholarship to two different D1 schools, my senior year of high school I was named Gatorade Player of the year, which I think is pretty cool.
If I won $1 million I would: Take all of my friends on a getaway to another country like Bali or Bora Bora or somewhere like that. I've never been out of the country before, and it would be boring without all my amazing friends, so I'd definitely bring all of them along with me.
A friend from another college soccer team is: One of my best friends from high school, Julie Owens, who plays for UNLV.
The athlete I admire most: Serena Williams. Not only is she an amazing and powerful woman, but like me, she has also suffered blood clots in her lungs. A lot of people die from that, and to see such a powerful athlete going through the same exact thing I was going through and bounce back from it was really inspirational and admirable.
My favorite sport other than soccer is: Dodgeball. Great game.
If you could have any car, what would it be: A Porshe boxer.
My advice to kids is: Just have fun and be yourself! Don't get wrapped up in what other people think about you because people are going to judge you your whole life; who cares what they think!
What is in your CD player right now: Well since it is 2011, I don't own a CD player anymore unfortunately. But the top 4 songs on my iPod I've been listening to are From the Hood by Traxamillion, Dirt Road Anthem by Jason Aldean, and Drink in My Hand by Eric Church, and Where the Hood at by DMX.
What was your favorite childhood toy: A pogo stick. I was on that thing day and night; I was definitely a pro.
My biggest fan: My three siblings, Shelby, Addison, and Macklen. It's really cool knowing how much they look up to me.
Individual goals for the season: To get as many shutouts as I can.
Biggest pet peeve: When people jiggle their leg up and down when they're bored. Or when someone's microwaving something and they take it out before the time finishes and don't clear it so you can't see the clock.
Earliest soccer memory: I had just joined a team, the Mighty Mights, in the middle of the season. We were at practice and I hated it because I had no idea what I was doing, and I was really uncomfortable because I was so shy. We played a scrimmage at the end, and a girl kicked a ball and it hit me in the face and blood started exploding out of my nose. My parents had to drag me out to the next practice after that experience.
If I could be on a reality TV show it would be: The Challenge on MTV. Some of the challenges they have to do look so fun, and I always wonder how well I would do compared to everyone else who has been on the show.
Extreme sport I would like to try: Definitely sky diving or base jumping. I'd be scared out of my mind because I'm afraid of heights, but doing that stuff gives me such a high!
If stranded on a desert island, three things I would take with me: If I'm stranded, there's really no point in trying to get off the island so I would definitely make the most of the situation by bringing some sunscreen, so I don't fry out there in the sun, a radio, so I can blast some sweet tunes, and probably a soccer ball to kick around and play with. Then once that got old, I would probably end up decorating the ball like a human to give me company Wilson-style.
