Alyssa Calderwood, a 2009 WS graduate and professional video game player, is a master at tackling obstacles in both the real and the online world and is always ready to face hard work and persevere.

Calderwood developed her interest in video games at a young age.  Her first video game was Super Mario Bros., which she played at the tender age of seven on a Nintendo.

“I got into video games in general because it was something cool to do, but it got competitive at 11 when I started beating all my friends at Halo,” said Calderwood.

Although she kept busy with her online games, Calderwood made sure not to let them consume her entire life. She also participated in multiple other activities such as soccer, football, and show choir while at WS. However, as her talent in gaming developed, she did have to make some sacrifices in her social life.

“Most [of my] eighth and ninth grade weekends were spent playing Halo 2 on xbox Live for at least twelve hours a day, usually from 7 p.m. to 7 a.m.,”said Calderwood.

Her intense commitment did pay off, as Calderwood gained much experience and improved to a level in which she was able to participate in many gaming tournaments.  During her sophomore year, she started attending gaming tournaments hosted by the Major League Gaming, or MLG, for the popular online xbox Live games Halo and Halo 2.

“The MLG tourneys gave me the best and most useful tournament experience,” said Calderwood.

Because her position as a female gamer is so unique, Calderwood has been met with a slew of reactions by members of her community.

Her family proudly supports her; they play and practice with her as well as help her out financially when it comes to gaming equipment and travel expenses.  However, Calderwood has been met with her fair share of adversity as a female gaming minority.

“Freshman year I was stuffed into a trash can because of it [great gaming abilities],” said Calderwood.

While it was sometimes difficult, Calderwood won the respect of her peers as she, and her gaming ability, grew.  She eventually garnered the nickname Master Chief, who is the main character in Halo.

Calderwood was encouraged by most, but occasionally faced antagonism from egotistical boys who were annoyed that a girl could beat them all at an activity mostly pursued by guys. Calderwood refuses to be intimidated, and just keeps playing the games that she has grown to be an expert at.

“Personally, I just play because I love it,” said Calderwood, “but it’s certainly a bit empowering.”