In the seconds between warmups and game time, Anna Miller steps away from her teammates. She bows her head in prayer, centering herself before play.

Miller, a senior shooting guard on Drake’s women’s basketball team, is front and center on the court—and at church on Sunday mornings. As a Christian, she said her faith is the foundation for everything she does.

“Faith is really, really important in my life,” Miller said. “I had to say no to things that I wanted to say yes to.”

She’s not the only Bulldog athlete who turns to prayer. Track and field athletes Gaven Corpin and Emilie Meyer also take time to pray before competition. Both are Catholic and say faith grounds them when nerves or pressure kick in.

Meyer prays Hail Marys before races to calm herself.

“It helps me stop spiraling when I’m stressing about a race,” she said.

Corpin prays the morning of his races, asking God for strength and confidence.

“God blessed me with this opportunity to be here, so I seek to do my best to pay that forward in my training,” Corpin said. “Whenever I get nervous, I remember that Jesus had the courage to accept the suffering ahead of Him, and that through Him I can have the grace to do the same.”

Balancing sports, school and a social life is demanding, but these athletes said making time for faith is just as important as training.

Miller said faith helps her handle wins and losses. Though she’s played basketball all her life, she said she reminds herself that she didn’t “make [herself] tall” and that her talent is a gift from God.

“For training and competition, I want to glorify the Lord in my play,” Miller said. “I want to do something with what the Lord has given me.”

Even during tough practices or disappointing games, Miller said she finds peace in knowing her worth doesn’t depend on her performance.

“I’ll never play well enough to earn a right standing before God,” Miller said. “Even if I don’t always feel it, I know God’s still there, and that’s helped me in those tough moments too. [My faith] affects how I treat my teammates, how I think about success and how I bounce back from failure.”

Meyer said her faith influences every part of her life — not just sports.

“Not only trusting in the process of practice and racing, but trusting in God and His plan for you,” Miller said. “My faith sets my morals, my values and what I believe is right or wrong. I try to be the best person I can be and reflect that onto others… be who God wants me to be.”

All three athletes said community has helped them grow in their faith during college.

Miller grew up Christian, but she said college is where she truly took ownership of her beliefs. She found support in Campus Fellowship and among her teammates.

“I never feel uncomfortable talking about God with any of them,” Miller said. “I share a little bit of faith with a lot of the team.”

Meyer leads a Bible study and said her coaches and teammates are encouraging about her beliefs.

“‘If you need to take a minute, just go pray and relax a little bit,’” Miller said her teammates often tell her. “It’s easier to do it together. When you have setbacks, you just have to remind yourself it’s part of God’s plan and He has something better planned for you. My faith has always kept me grounded — it’s bigger than a bad race.”

Corpin, who was an altar boy from third grade through high school and helped teach children in religious education classes, said he was nervous about finding a community in college. He joined DU Catholic and found the support he wanted.

“Being around more people my age who are determined to grow in their faith is a highly formative experience for me and keeps me accountable — even when my busy schedule sometimes feels like too much,” Corpin said.

Miller encourages anyone exploring faith to talk to others and know they’re not alone.

“To say that any Christian’s walk is perfect is a no,” Miller said. “There are always ups and downs. But one thing that keeps me really grounded is knowing that the Lord is faithful to what He promised, even if I don’t feel it.”

Corpin echoed that sentiment, saying that while the intersection of faith and athletics isn’t always easy to explain, it’s worth exploring.

“If you feel strongly inclined to explore the faith, it is God calling you to come closer to Him,” Corpin said. “I would not be where I am today without my faith. It has helped me so much as a student-athlete from both a discipline and commitment standpoint.”