From the time I was little I knew I wanted to play soccer at the highest level, but I had no idea how to attain this goal. I loved to play and joined every team that I could because I was so passionate about the sport. One of the biggest challenges that I faced growing up was the fact that I was playing in the state of Maine. At the time, Maine was nowhere near as strong at soccer as some of the neighboring states, like Massachusetts. For me to have a chance at the highest level, I knew I needed to get out of the state to gain exposure to coaches and a higher level of competition.
Through middle school and into high school, I joined the best possible club teams in the state and participated in the Olympic Development Program for my age group. My club team coaches were of some help in that they always sought out-of-state tournaments and friendly matches that would help us develop as players. We would travel all over the Northeast to compete against some of the best competition that we could find. It never seemed to be enough, though, because no one would give a team from Maine the time of day. It was an incredibly frustrating time for me because I knew I had the ability to play with these top players, but lacked the necessary resources and guidance throughout most of my process to get where I wanted to go. I was able to gain a little bit of exposure and received some recognition from college scouts who were on the sidelines at these tournaments, even if they were not there to recruit me in the first place. But these interactions rarely amounted to much of anything. One of the other options was to go to camps for some of the schools that I thought I might want to play for in the future. By doing this, I was able to make personal contact with some of the coaching staff and could make a name for myself as a legitimate player, rather than be overlooked because of the state that I came from.
I set personal goals each step of the way and worked hard to achieve those goals. I knew I needed to make varsity as a freshman so I played winter, spring, and summer soccer to keep my skills polished throughout the year. I also decided to participate in sports that would be complementary to my soccer career and would help me get to the next level, such as indoor and outdoor track. My high school coach was the one who played the most integral role in my collegiate recruiting and selection process. If not for him, I would have been completely lost and would have missed out on the opportunity to play at the Division I level. He knew more about the process than my parents and I could have ever found on our own. My high school coach provided me with all of the soccer-related guidance that I needed because he was able to draw on his extensive network of soccer connections and his own collegiate experience. When letters and questionnaires started to roll in from various soccer programs, he provided the answers that I needed.
He happened to be good friends with Mark Krikorian, the head coach of the University of Hartford Women’s Soccer program at the time, and he suggested that I attend their camp the summer heading into my senior year so that Krikorian could assess my abilities. As it turned out, I ended up impressing the coach and he recruited me for his own program. I was ecstatic because I knew that this was a competitive Division I program and had never expected that they would actually want me on their squad. Without taking the time to weigh my options and see what else might have come my way, I jumped at the offer from Hartford. I ultimately ended up receiving a scholarship to play there and got to compete at the level I had always dreamed about.
Despite my success, I know that there are many things I would have done differently. Academically, Hartford was not the caliber school that I wanted to attend, but I made my decision based on soccer. If I had access to a service like NCSA during my own collegiate search, I would have been able to find a school that met my standards both athletically and academically. I needed the help of someone who was knowledgeable in all aspects of college selection and recruitment, not just a soccer mentor. NCSA would have educated me about all of my options and how to maximize my potential, not just as an athlete, but as a student-athlete.
