Like many of us in health care, Maya Hahn says one of the toughest things about her work is to "find new ways to constantly make little improvements".
Except Hahn is talking about football.
She was recently announced Young Sportswoman of the Year - a category sponsored by the Hutt Valley DHB - at the Hutt Valley Sports Awards 2019 on May 16.
Maya Hahn in action back in 2016 for Hutt Valley High School
Maya was a key member of the New Zealand Under 17s Women's World Cup team. In winning bronze in Uruguay, the team achieved the best result ever recorded by a New Zealand team at a FIFA event.
The team captured the interest of all New Zealanders and gave the women's game a major boost.
Hahn was a member of the Capital Women's National League team, and is now based in America.
"I play and go to school at the University of Oregon in the pac-12 conference.
"So far I’ve completed a spring season which is essentially exhibition games against more local schools and teams.
"Our first game was against the Portland Thorns, who are one of the top pro teams in the country so that was a pretty cool experience in my first week."
For her, the hardest thing in football is being able to adapt to new environments and players and being able to find new ways to constantly make little improvements.
"Football is such a complex game so nothing is really easy and there is always ways to get better in all aspects of the game both on and off the field.
"But I really enjoy going to training and playing with my mates so the easiest part is honestly just being motivated and excited to play and train."
Her advice to kids wanting to be better players is to just enjoy what they do and have fun.
"Be willing to constantly improve and get yourself into an environment when you can achieve this."
Her ultimate goal is to be a professional football player.
"I would love to play in one of the top leagues in Europe, I really like how Barcelona play and what they are doing on the women’s side at the moment."
