2008 Woodie Awards
Senior Emily Thompson says goodbye to an era
Lauren Rippee
Issue date: 11/1/06 Section: Sports
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When Thompson got her chance to come play at SSU, she immediately jumped on the opportunity. After playing soccer all her life, mostly indoors and mostly with the boys, coming to a new team, as well as a new state, was quite the experience.
"Freshman year, it was really hard to find a balance, because I wanted to get a little taste of everything," said Thompson.
After a few weeks on the team and getting a chance to play both offense and defense, she decided offense was where she belonged.
"I like going forward and attacking, I like making things happen."
Her first year, Thompson was a strong presence on the soccer team, appearing in 18 games and acquiring four starts, helping lead the team to playoffs. As a freshman, starting can be a huge stressor on how you will do on the team in the future; but Thompson was able to prove herself, and has certainly moved up from there.
Over the past three years, she has received numerous awards and titles, was named Second Team All-CCAA, and was recently the Brine CCAA Player of the Week. Thompson is only the third SSU player to earn the award.
Her accomplishments and outstanding number of goals this season have definitely helped bring the women's soccer team closer to the playoffs than they've been for three years.
"We are shooting for the playoffs in Florida right now. I think it's the best way for me to go out," said Thompson.
Since she hasn't missed a start since her freshman year, Thompson will certainly be missed out on the field. Even though she has been dealing with the pressure of always having to be ready to play, it is the part of the game she will miss the most.
"Knowing I have to keep working hard for my spot keeps me on my toes. Our bench is really deep, and I know there are other girls who want my spot just as bad as I do," said Thompson.
Besides soccer, she also enjoys the competition of other sports, especially mixed martial arts (MMA). For the past two summers, she has been training for fights, and has competed in two so far.
"Training is just as grueling, maybe even more [so] than soccer. After graduation, it is definitely something I would like to get back into," said Thompson.