With a school as competitive in sports as the University of Wisconsin, the word "student" in student-athlete is often overlooked. Fans sometimes forget that the athletes they cheer for and celebrate on game day attend classes during the week, take tests and have to worry about finding jobs after graduation just like any other student.

The reality of the matter is that most collegiate athletes will not make the pros after receiving their diplomas. In fact, it is estimated that just 5 percent of student athletes become professionals in their sport.

For Maya Carroll, that reality became clear this summer. The former walk-on volleyball player chose not to rejoin the team this year for her senior season, instead taking an internship with the Big Ten Network.

Working as an intern, Carroll has been able to help with the production crew behind the scenes, prepare the on-screen talent before filming and write feature stories and blog entries on the network's website.

As much as she enjoyed her time with the Badgers, Carroll said the position with the Big Ten Network was too good to pass up.

"I loved my three years on the volleyball team," said Carroll, a journalism major. "I would not have traded them for anything in the world. … [But] when a great opportunity comes up and arises, an internship opens up, you have to jump on it."

Junior Audra Jeffers, one of Carroll's close friends on the team, was the first of the teammates to find out the news. Jeffers said she was working as a referee at the Stadium Sports Bar's beach volleyball league when Carroll stopped by to tell her about the internship.

"I think my first reaction was so much excitement, because I knew it was a career goal of Maya's, and I knew it's just right up her alley," Jeffers said. "She'd be great at it."

But once Carroll left, the thought of losing a teammate and close friend sunk in for Jeffers, causing her to postpone the game she was refereeing.

"All of a sudden, the tears just came," Jeffers said. "I call a timeout, I run off the ref stand and I chased Maya down the street. I gave her a big hug and I'm just crying because Maya and I, when she was on the team, we would always hang out when we didn't play freshman year on the bench."

Senior setter Jackie Simpson, who started her career at Wisconsin the same year as Carroll, had bittersweet emotions as well when she heard of the decision. Like Jeffers, though, Simpson knew the chance to work with the Big Ten Network was perfect for Carroll.

"Obviously we were all really sad because Maya's a great friend and teammate," Simpson said. "But it was such an amazing opportunity for her that we were all really excited, too. So it was kind of a big mix of emotions."

The choice did not come easy for Carroll, who said she agonized over whether to return to the team for her senior season or work with the up-and-coming Big Ten Network.

"It was a very tough decision to leave the volleyball team so that I could take on this internship," Carroll said. "I dreaded telling (head coach) Pete (Waite) because it's really not an easy team or opportunity to walk away from."

"She developed great relationships and had some great friends on the team, and went through a lot with them over the years," Waite said. "It was difficult for her to do, but I think she's happy that she's made the move."

The opportunity to play for Wisconsin in the first place was a unique one for Carroll, who didn't start playing volleyball until her junior year of high school. As a freshman, she was cut from the volleyball team and instead decided to play tennis for two years, until trying out again after hitting a growth spurt.

Carroll was also a standout athlete in track as a high jumper. As the state high jump champion as a sophomore, she was recruited by several schools for track. But after visiting other colleges and meeting the coaches, Carroll had her heart set on being a Badger, even if that meant walking on with the team.

"What I truly wanted to do was be part of a close-knit team and I really wanted to go to school in Madison," Carroll said. "It was a dream come true for me to be a walk-on on the team."

When she finally told her coaches and teammates that she would no longer be on the team for her senior season, Carroll received nothing but support from them.

The decision made sense in Waite's mind, as he knew Carroll would be furthering her career by working with the network.

"I was really trying to be supportive of her decision, because opportunities like this don't come along very often," Waite said. "It seemed to fit perfectly in her plans. I know she's learning a lot this year and getting some great experience."

For Simpson, one of the team's five seniors, the reality of life after volleyball has finally begun to sink in after seeing Carroll begin the first steps of her career.

"It's definitely starting to kick in," Simpson said. "People have been talking about jobs and things like that, and 'I've got 17 credits left, what am I going to do?'"

Unlike sports such as basketball or football, volleyball provides little in the way of professional opportunities in the United States. Although it is an Olympic sport, volleyball only exists on the pro level in the beach form.

"You can play overseas, so there are small opportunities, but it's not the same," Simpson said. "It's definitely that aspect of being a student first [that] is really important in this sport."

Taking the next step