Lilyana Vasquez
The Southern Editor
Freshman Christina Nordlander was welcomed with open arms to the Florida Southern women’s golf team, bringing international experience from her hometown of Malmö, Sweden, as well as time in Spain. As a sports marketing and communication major, she is beginning her collegiate career with high hopes both on and off of course.
Nordlander appreciates the community at Florida Southern and exclaims how she was met with lots of kindness. She was “pleasantly surprised” with her welcoming and inviting teammates, noting that she always feels very cared for.
Her Florida Southern journey started when she had gotten in contact with the coach and other women on the golf team before committing. After hearing all good things, she knew FSC was right.
“I just felt like it was a good fit, so I just took a leap of faith and just, like, jumped right into it,” Nordlander said.
She was previously homeschooled so moving not only somewhere she had never been, but also to a school with lots of people was quite the change.
“3,000 students for me is enormous,” Nordlander said. However, her excitement she felt overshadowed all of her worries.
Nordlander expressed that while home school is different, it gave her discipline.
“If you don’t do your schoolwork, no one’s going to tell you to do your schoolwork,” Nordlander said.
While school and sports can get overwhelming, she always finds a positive.
“If it’s only stressful, like, some things you have to do, of course; But I don’t think it’s good for you if you don’t find any enjoyment in what you do,” Nordlander said.
Her ambition begins with excitement for tournaments and traveling with the team. With so much time spent together she expresses how they’ll see each other at their best and at their worst. Due to golf’s unpredictability she believes being there together will be beneficial.
“You can be the best player in the world and you will always have a really bad day,” Nordlander said.
Even on the bad days, she wants to be a light for others.
“I feel like if you always try your best, no one can tell you that you should have won, because you did your best,” Nordlander said. This is something she hopes to always be remembered by.
“I hope when I become a senior, I’m going to have three years of people below me, and I hope they will remember me and the coach will remember me as a happy and positive person,” Nordlander said.
With positivity in mind, one thing she would like to work on is maintaining positivity on the course.
“Just working on trying to limit the bad feelings that I do, or that I will get. I want to play good, I want to win,” Nordlander said. “I think I need to just work on not letting [the bad days] affect me, especially outside of golf,” Nordlander said.
By working to maintain positivity on and off the field, Nordlander is determined to strengthen not only her game, but also her outlook on life.
She knew golf was the sport for her because she always missed it when she wasn’t playing. “that also showed me why I really loved golf because I couldn’t go without it, I wanted to play golf all the time,” Nordlander said. She played multiple sports growing up but said that golf just “felt right”.
By the end of this year she believes this first season will allow her to gain confidence on the course, as well as knowledge in the classroom.
“I’m probably going to find my footing more in who I am as a student going to classes, because I feel like that’s something I’ve been missing,” Nordlander said.
She is ambitious to start her journey as a student athlete overcoming life’s adventures.
As she begins her first season, Nordlander is focused on building confidence on the course, finding her role in the classroom, and bringing positivity in all aspects. With her favorite flower being the sunflower, symbolizing happiness and optimism, Nordlander aims to bring that same energy to the course, one swing at a time.
