On January 19, 2024, senior Sophia Merjil signed with Le Tourneau University to play D3 NCAA soccer.
Being on Loretto’s soccer team since freshman year, and playing since she was eight, Merjil has been dreaming about this day for years.
Merjil said “It’s always been a dream of mine to play college soccer, I’ve put so many years of work into the sport.
It’s also just fun and a good challenge for me.”
Merjil has always kept herself busy at Loretto being in student council, NHS, FHS, NAHS, Pre-med, LAA, and leadership.
She said “ Loretto has really prepared me for college, the workload they give us has helped me with my time management.
My extracurriculars really added to that.”
Knowing Merjil in the classroom and on the field Coach Nieto said, “ I think Sophia has displayed the ideal student-athlete.
She has been the model for the team when we need one and an example of what should be done.
I’ll always remember that she was my first athlete to be signed with a university.
She has set the standard for all other student-athletes.”
With biomedicine as her major, Merjil mentions which extracurriculars help her most, she said,“ Premed has helped me out a lot.
It relates to my major and it’s nice to hear about med school for some like Dr. J [Dr. Benavidez] since he gives a recent perspective on what med school is like.”
Merjil has an incredible work ethic and she credits it all to her inspirations, she said “In my life, my mom is my biggest inspiration.
I wouldn’t be able to do any of this without her, she has taught me everything I know.
In soccer, Messi is my biggest inspiration because he overcame a lot of obstacles in his life.
He is also just a normal person like me.”
Adding to her already tight schedule, Merjil also plays club soccer with her team Rush.
“Consistency is key, in life and in soccer.”
Merjil couldn’t hide her excitement while talking about her future team at Le Tourneau University.
She said, “ I’m looking forward to traveling with my team, making memories, and having new experiences.”
As Merjil’s last home soccer season comes to an end and goodbyes start to be said, we can find comfort that she will always be doing exceptional things on and off the field in college.