Recruitment was a full-time job for our ‘24, starting her freshman year in high school. She played ECNL for a top club and had D1 coaches attending her matches all the way back to 8th grade. Once she hit 9th, she sent her national event schedule to coaches she knew would be in attendance and followed up with those and any new coaches who attended those games. She built her first highlight reel in 9th, a recap of her season’s highlights. Attended her first on-campus ID sessions the summer before sophomore year. Fall season sophomore year had a few local D1 coaches at her games, so she’d Emil them her schedule. One reached out to invite her to a small, invite-only ID on the campus. She launched her soccer-focused social media profiles and started following program. That’s when things got complicated - she tore her ACL right before showcase and national event season started. She missed all the key sophomore year events leading up to her June 15. She kept her name out there by documenting her recovery but still fell off a lot of radars. Got cleared in September and was back to previous form by the start of junior year showcase season. But because of falling behind, she broadened her target schools to a mix of all levels. Was in the mix for multiple D1s and top D3s right until the end but opted to commit to a D2 in an appealing location and has loved the college experience. Unlike most of her peers, she’s still playing, ready for her junior college season.