By Margaret Schell

R anked No.1 in the nation for academic success rate, Georgia College & State University is home to hundreds of multi-talented scholar-athletes — four of whom are class of 2025 international students, who credit sports with creating life-changing opportunities for them to thrive, both on and off the playing field.

Shradha Chhabra from New Delhi, India, started playing tennis when she was 10 years old. She loved the sport so much that she plays on the GCSU women’s tennis team. Another passion of hers is psychology — learning about human behavior.

“Psychology helps me understand people in a deeper way,” Chhabra said. “I love reading various research papers and working in a research lab.”

She’s enjoyed compiling and describing her research at conferences, as well as assisting in the Sleep-E Lab under faculty advisor Dr. Taylor Elsey — who enlists students' participation in every step of the research process answering questions about human sleep.

Chhabra will apply the skills learned from Georgia College at The University of Akron in Ohio pursuing her Ph.D. in industrial/organizational psychology. Then, she hopes for a career where she can elevate employee well-being.

“Playing tennis helped me become disciplined,” Chhabra said. “I also learned that grades, awards, wins and losses will come and go, but the relationships built over these last four years will last a lifetime.”

Chiara Santaro Martinez of Santa Ursula, Spain, will graduate from Georgia College with her Bachelor of Science in Exercise Science. She began playing tennis at age 6 and has enjoyed playing women’s tennis as a Bobcat.

“Playing tennis gives me a sense of relief whenever I'm stressed about something,” she said. “I can just let it go on the tennis court and have fun with it.”

Santaro Martinez will use the tools she learned in exercise science and apply it to physical therapy school.

“Physical therapy relates well with sports,” she said. “I've always wanted to stay in that environment, helping professional team members or tennis players recover.”

Chhabra, Santaro Martinez and the other members of the Bobcat women’s tennis team — ranked sixth in the Southeast Region, earning the No. 4 Seed in the Peach Belt Tournament — will play in Columbus, Georgia, beginning noon Friday, April 25, and possibly lasting until the championship on Sunday.

Since age 5, Gabriel “Gabe” Cizek of Prague, Czech Republic, has played tennis. He’s on the GCSU tennis team and an exercise science major with a pre-professional and sports medicine concentration.

For four years, his teammates became his “second family.”

“I’ll miss every person I shared the court with and my roommates,” Cizek said. “I’ll also miss Coach Barsby.”

Dr. Mike Martino, interim director and professor of exercise science, had a tremendous, positive influence on Cizek throughout his academic journey.

“I hope he knows how much of an impact he’s had on me,” Cizek said. “He inspired and shaped me and built the foundation of my passion for exercise science and sports performance — I’ll carry this with me for the rest of my life.”

At Georgia College, Cizek learned the importance of building close, personal, respectful relationships with others.

“Life’s not just about giving instructions or corrections,” he said. “It’s about making meaningful connections that have the power to transform lives on and off the court and inside and outside the classroom.”

Cizek and the Bobcats men’s team – ranked fourth in the Southeast Region, earning the No. 5 Seed in the Peach Belt Tournament — will play in Columbus, Georgia, beginning at 9 a.m. Friday, April 25, and possibly lasting until the championship on Sunday.

Dallas Clayton is a basketball player and marketing major from Auckland, New Zealand. He was drawn to Georgia College for its community, weather and facilities.

“Basketball is a great mix of human potential — fitness, athleticism and coordination,” he said. “It’s also fun. On average, you score around 50% of every shot you put up.”

Clayton started playing basketball at age 6 and by age 16, he was traveling with the New Zealand national team, participating in NBA events.

Last summer, Clayton hosted GCSU College of Business & Technology students on a study abroad program in his home country. Now, he’s considering playing basketball professionally in Europe, Thailand or Canada. Later, he may work in marketing in the U.S.

“I’m leaning towards professional basketball,” Clayton said. “I’m not ready to give up the sport.”