SENIORS PLEASED WITH EXCITMENT FROM RECORD CROWD

KAYLI KEOUGH: Our game on Sunday vs Southern Miss was what I would call a FUN game.  Not only because UCF won or because our team had a lot of energy, but also because of the record-setting crowd in attendance! Coach Starkey as well as Khalilah Mitchell and our Marketing Department worked hard to allow many young elementary school students to come to the game for free.  In an effort to promote reading, the students were given a bookmark and that would allow them to attend free of chart.  Those students must've enjoyed thos bookmarks because over 2,500 fans were in attendance and everyone in the Arena could feel the energy and enthusiasm they brought.  As players, we were all excited before the game began just because we were about to play another conference game.  We could feel added intensity upon the start of the game, however, because of all the cheers coming from the crowd.  It's so much more fun for us as players to hear the crowd get excited when something good happens on the court or cheering us on defensively; it makes a HUGE difference.  So we want to say a big THANK YOU! to all of the fans who came out to support and we hope you come to many more!

ASHIA KELLY: Wow!! Sunday's game against Southern Miss was an awesome experience. The game was incredible to play because of the great support that we had. We were able to use the crowd's energy to help us get through our breakdowns and make the next best play. This was a one in a lifetime experience for me an I hope that we will continue to have these types of crowds throughout our season. 

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: SARAH GETS THROUGH AN INJURY READING ABOUT COACH DON MEYER

SARAH GREEN: The book that had a great impact on my life was "How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer." This book had a great impact on my life because I read it as I was going through an injury and it helped me to realize how lucky I am that I had only injured my knee and I did not lose a limb. 

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: ERIKA GROWS FROM READING THE BIBLE

ERIKA JONES: A book that has had a profound effect on me is the Bible, because it keeps me on a steady path where I can seek the Lord and get to know Him better. I feel as if it is my notebook for the test of life. For everything that I have went through or I am going to go through, there is a solution. This book helps my faith to become stronger as I see what people have went through and overcame through God's mercy and how His Son gave his life so that we may be free. The Bible will forever have a great influence in my life.  

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: KAYLI LEARNS ABOUT SACRIFICE AND BRAVERY THROUGH READING

KAYLI KEOUGH: Obviously the Bible has had the strongest effect on my life in that it's truly changed my perspective on everything.  But excluding that, I'd have to say "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett.  It shows all of the amazing things that are possible when a few individuals are brave enough to follow their instincts.  It also shows how at times sacrifice is the only way to make things happen; we must give up a lot in order to gain a lot.  Hearing people's stories is so eye-opening.

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: GEVENIA LEARNS LIFE LESSONS FROM READING

GEVENIA CARTER: When I was younger I read a book by Sharon M. Draper called "Darkness Before Dawn." The book touched me because it talked about many things I had seen growing up. If it was friends or loved ones, a woman or girl I knew had experienced what these women in the book had. It talks about things people would ignore and don't want to accept happening. I was able to gain understanding that life isn't fair, and that it could always be worse.

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: BOOKS IMPACT AISHA AND MEGHAN

AISHA PATRICK: The book that had an impact with me was "Their Eyes Were Watching God" I read this book my senior year in high school and enjoyed it. They also made a movie about it.  This book impacted me because it was a woman who didn't have much and went through not having anything to gaining a lot to losing it all and had faith that God would guide her through her problems.

MEGHAN KEOUGH: I'm actually in the middle of reading this book, but I really like it so far so thought I would use it. It's called "3:16 The Numbers Of Hope" by Max Lucado. It breaks down John 3:16 and spends a couple chapters explaining each part of He loves, He gave, We believe, We live. It has a lot of good stories from the bible but also incorporates lessons for life in today's world. I've never really read a book like this before, but I like it a lot. Every night that I get to read, I can always seem to relate something that happened to me that day and gain new perspective on it. 

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION BOOKMARKS

Part of the UKnight for Education initiative is to provide bookmarks for all the elementary school students in Orange County in hopes of promoting a pro-reading message.  Here is a look at the bookmarks that were delivered to the schools this week. 

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: BRYEASHA READS ABOUT THE POSITIVE EFFECTS OF HELPING OTHERS

BRYEASHA BLAIR: A book that really had an effect on me was "Cry, The Beloved Country" by Alan Paton. This book had a effect on me because the main character in the book was called upon by someone in another country seeking his help to assist an ill family member. Without hesitation, he traveled and not only helped the sick one but ended up doing a lot of positive things for the country. It showed me that no matter what, when you are called to make a change, take advantage of it because you never know how large the result will be for you and others.  

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: STEPHANIE LEARNS A GREAT LIFE LESSON FROM A BOOK

STEPHANIE TAYLOR: A book that had an effect on me was the "Pretty Little Liars" series.  In these books, a group of friends would lie and had to lie even more to hide the first lies.  I learned that it is best to be truthful and as much as you think it may be safer to lie even if you're protecting someone, it's always less stressful and more safe to tell the truth.  There's always someone there who you can trust.

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION: RACINE AND LEO TALK ABOUT CHILDREN'S BOOKS

RACINE DAVIS: The book that had the most profound effect on me, was "The Giving Tree" by Shel Silverstein, mainly cause it was one of my first books I could read by myself. I also adored the story about giving, especially when the tree had nothing left to give  yet it was still happy to help the ones it loved.

LEO MONTALVO: A book that has had a profound effect on me is a children’s book named, "Love You Forever," written by Robert Munsch and illustrated by Sheila McGraw. It was one of the first books I read.

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION BOOK REVIEW: "DREAM GIVER"

ASHIA KELLY: The book that impacted my life the most was the "Dream Giver" by Bruce Wilkinson. This book had a major effect on my life because it was about one person's journey towards their dream. It talked about all the obstacles that one must face in order to get their destination. It taught me that adversity comes with every success and that it my responsibility to endure the pain in order to gain a rewarding future. It is a very short book but contains some very meaningful lessons. That is why I love this book so much.

UKNIGHT FOR EDUCATION SET FOR SUNDAY