<p>You didn’t go into detail about your ECs. First off: they don’t stink. You have more volunteering than I did, you sound dedicated to a sport, and provided oyu did in fact like what oyu did, you showed you like to help others. Good, fun stuff all around. But please: don’t claim to have “amazing” essays or “stellar” recommendations. You can’t know that, and who will you be comparing them to? Other people in your school? Really, the essays and recommendations are compared against the best students at this sort of thign throughout the nation. A few of those will shine and make an impact on the admissions decision, and a few will stink and blow up an application. For us everyday mortals though, it’s the rest of the application that will determine it. So, if you’re counting on your essays and recommendations to put you over the top, put your heart and soul into your essays, get the best recs you can, but make sure everything else seems solid. And remember, top schools be reaches. Nearly always.</p>