Luke Baldridge '26 Recruiting Profile

My name is Luke Baldridge and I am a junior in high school from Lakeland, Tennessee. I go to Lakeland Preparatory School and am a 2026 graduate. I have played soccer since I was 4 years old and competitive soccer since I was 10 years old. I have developed a love and desire to play soccer. My hard work and focus are displayed in school, on the field, and off the field. I am left-foot dominant and play left back and center back for my club and school soccer teams. After high school, I am interested in continuing my academic and athletic career to take it to a collegiate level. 

At Lakeland Preparatory School, I start as center back and have been the captain of the team for 2 seasons. I have led and strived to make the team better as my school is newer and was established recently. As I have developed as an athlete, I have played numerous positions on the field, therefore, making my play style more well-rounded. Besides defense, however, my versatility is shown as I can play midfield and offense as well. To add on, I have played basketball and run track and field for my school. Each sport, coach, and team I have played for has helped me grow as a player and person as my coachability and dedication sharpened. For club, I play for the 2008 Lobos ENCL-RL team where I primarily play left back. At left back, my speed and agility along with being left-foot dominant allow me to play both sides of the ball. This season, the team consisted of majority new players and a new coach. At the start of the season, it was necessary for each player to succeed, to portray teamwork and accountability. As a result, we ended the season with a winning record and winning the Tennessee State League championship. As a player, I have grown and developed my game by learning from various coaching and play styles and would love to continue growing in college.

Academically, I have balanced school and sports and successfully maintained high grades and a 4.45 GPA. In my first time of taking the ACT, I scored a 27 but am looking to improve as I will take more tests this Winter/Spring. I have consistently taken honors classes since my freshman year. Currently, I am taking 2 Advanced Placement (AP) classes and 2 Dual Enrollment classes through the University of Memphis. In my freshman year, I took AP Human Geography and received a 4 on the AP National Exam. I have been enrolled in classes related to health sciences to possibly study medicine in college. I have been a member of the Health Occupations Students of America Club to dive deeper into a health career field. I am also a member of the National Honor Society and the National BETA Club. Both require exceptional grades and conduct in school and community service outside of school. Along with grades, my behavior and focus are shown in my conduct and overall performance in school.

My success academically and athletically would make me a valuable player and student as my desire to grow motivates me to be the best I can be. My ability to play center back and left back shows my proficient play style on both sides of the field after experience with multiple teams, coaches, and sports. In school, my grades and conduct display hard work and dedication to the importance of valuing priorities. The capability to play soccer collegiately is shown in my desire and goal to succeed on and off the field.