Duncan High School girls track & field coach Tim Buben called junior Agnese Ducci, an exchange student from Italy, the “hardest worker in the stadium.”

“She’s always ready for the next challenge with a smile on her face,” Buben said.

Ducci also starred for Duncan’s volleyball team earlier this semester. She has been playing since she was about 7 years old.

“In Italy, each sport lasts all year long, so that has been my only sport since then,” Ducci said. “Volleyball season here in Duncan has probably been my favorite time of this whole experience. I remember writing all over my exchange student application that I wanted to keep playing volleyball and my dream came true.”

But Ducci had no experience running competitively. Her Duncan classmates encouraged her to join the team. She used it as an opportunity for conditioning.

“The people that I found in both sports turned out to be my best friends, and I will never stop being thankful for them,” Ducci said. “Sports have always been a constant in my life, and I think that all of my coaches have had a big impact on how I turned out, and that includes my American ones.”

Ducci considers herself a hard worker by nature, both in sports and school. Her parents, Lorenzo Ducci and Alessandra Trabalza, instilled those values within her. Spending the school year in Oklahoma, Ducci said, has taught her to “adapt to new situations even if they look scary.”

“I have loved every minute of my time here in Oklahoma,” Ducci said. “I’ve had such a good experience and I’ve been very lucky with host family, friends, teachers and coaches. I will never forget the extremely kind and welcoming people I have met. Each and every single one of them has left a mark on my here and I will carry that with me forever.”