Central Alumni Erica Carter was inducted into the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame. Carter was a 2006 Chicago Sun Times all-area honoree, a three-time Daily Herald all-area team member, a Daily Herald honoree captain in 2006, the Naperville Sun 2006 Player of the Year and McDonald’s All-American nominee, all for basketball. Today as a product manager she has continued to use the lessons she’s learned from basketball to further her career.
The following Q&A questions and responses are taken both from a panel discussion of all five inductees and from a Central Times interview with the inductee.
Q: How does it feel to be included in Central’s Athletic Hall of Fame?
A: It’s a big honor, I know so many athletes have gone through Naperville Central’s student athlete programs so it feels like an amazing honor.
Q: Were there any lessons you learned from your career that you’d like to share with students today?
You’re never going to win everything. It’s a part of life, through your career, whatever it is, things aren’t going to go perfect. And make sure you’re learning from failures as well. I think it’s very important to be coachable, actually listen to the advice, take it to heart and don’t be a know-it-all.
Q: What do you think about where women’s athletics is today?
A: I think it’s pretty remarkable. You mentioned Iowa- I think they broke records for the amount of people that watch the game and I feel like that really shows how far women’s sports has come. We’ve been able to prove not only that we’re amazing athletes, but that we can hold our own. That showed especially this past year in the NCAA championships and the records it broke with the crowd, the audience and the impact it’s making on sports today.
Q: Who was the best teammate you ever had?
A: I would say my teammate, [Central alumna and current WNBA player] Candice Parker. When I was a Freshman she was a Junior and I really felt like she kind of took me under her wing. She would help with not only making the whole team better by pushing us, the teamwork on the court and off the court but she brought me under her wing in terms of helping me with my confidence and pulling me to the side to help with my shooting. I remember doing one on one drills, just working together a lot in order to improve my game and improve the team’s game as well.
For more on the 2024 inductees, click here.
