Paulina Goodman – Johns Hopkins University
Attending Johns Hopkins University has been a dream come true. From playing on an amazing soccer team with incredible talent to sitting in classes among some of the brightest students in America, I couldn’t have asked for a better college experience.
Ironically, when I started looking for schools where I could equally play soccer and get a great education, Johns Hopkins did not even cross my mind. Born and raised in California, I assumed I would stay in California for college, or at least on the West Coast. However, when I got in contact with NCSA and told them what kind of collegiate program I was looking for, most of the colleges that they saw as “best-fit” for me were on the East Coast. Surprised at this but open to all possibilities, I browsed the websites of some East Coast schools that they recommended, while NCSA mailed out my NCSA profile to a number of college soccer coaches all over the nation.
One of the coaches to receive my profile was Leo Weil, head coach of Johns Hopkins University. Upon receiving my profile, he sent me an email saying that if I was interested in playing for Johns Hopkins University, to let him know and he would send more information. At this point, I had looked at the Johns Hopkins University website about fifty times, having realized how great the Hopkins academic and athletic programs looked. I emailed Coach Weil back immediately, asking him to send me as much information as he had. As I browsed through pamphlets about Hopkins and kept in touch with Coach, I realized that Hopkins was where I would love to spend the next four years of my life. I visited, and only fell more in love.
On August 15th, 2008, I left Los Angeles, California for Baltimore, Maryland because pre-season soccer would start on the 17th. Since our first training day on the 17th, the 2008 Women’s Soccer Team has had the first undefeated season in soccer history, and went further in the NCAA tournament than ever before. Personally, I feel that during this soccer season I experienced some of the most exhilarating, challenging, and fun times of my life. I can’t thank NCSA enough for opening my eyes up to a world of possibilities, and for guiding me to a place and team that I love.
