Even at a young age, Krista Zultevicz knew what she wanted.
"When I was 8 years old, someone came in the gym and they asked me what I wanted to do with gymnastics," Zultevicz recalled. "Some girls said they wanted to go to the Olympics and all this stuff and I said I want to go to college. I want to get a scholarship."
After 10 years of putting in the work, the 18-year-old saw that dream become a reality, as the level 10 gymnast from Shickshinny recently committed to Kentucky.
"Just imagine spending the last decade of your life devoting all of your time, all of your free time, everything to one thing and then finally being able to say it's yours and hold it in your hand, basically," Zultevicz said.
"It's always emotional because of the hard work and the time and the dedication," Northeast Gymnastics Academy coach Lori Dexter said. "So when they have just that strength inside of them to continue on and to achieve these goals, it just makes everything worth it."
Most college coaches don't have the time to come up here to Northeast Gymnastics to recruit. That's why Zultevicz, like many hopeful college gymnasts, has her own website: https://www.gym-style.com/kristazultevicz. That way, all her results and videos are just a click, or a tap away.
"It put a name to the face and it provided videos and all of my rankings and information," Zultevicz said. "So it was just an easy place for colleges to come and visit it and just learn about me and my family and how I compete and I think it really benefited it."
It certainly helped. Kentucky is a top ten program in women's gymnastics.
"Well, established?" Zultevicz asked rhetorically. "We are, but we're definitely on the rise, as well and it feels great to be able to go in and be a part of that program and then have the best four years of my life in college."
"I just really respect that program because they don't just look at the athletes for their gymnastics abilities," Dexter explained. "They look at the character of the athlete and outside of the gym, Krista's just such a hard worker. She's just that kind of kid and it's just wonderful for her and her family."
"I've worked on a farm every day of my life," Zultevicz said. "I'm a farm girl and it's just like that there. It feels like home."
Thanks to that hard work and talent, it will be.