Sophia Nickel '24 Recruiting Profile

As a kid growing up in Colorado, I've always been active. From a young age I enjoyed riding mountain bikes, Tae Kwon Do and participated in athletics.  Through Tae Kwon Do, I started to develop my competitive edge, regularly sparring with others during class.  By the age of ten,  I had achieved my first major accomplishment when I received my first degree black belt.  

I was introduced to soccer at age four and if I am going to be honest, I was only there for the end of game snacks.  As I got older, I started to really love the game.  By the age of eleven, I began to appreciate the game and that was when I realized soccer was going to be a big part of my life.

I come from a family of soccer nerds.  My father, mother and little brother all enjoy playing to this day.  There are days when soccer is from morning to night in our house, including kids’ games, adult games and Major League Soccer games.  Soccer has even been international for me, being the basis for family vacations, playing with Rush Select in Italy in 2019 and over this past summer being able to train in spain for three weeks.

One of the biggest learnings I have had in my soccer career is that there will always be someone willing to work harder and driven to be better.  I want that to be me.  This began when I started my soccer career at the Colorado Rush. Starting on the third team when I first moved to the club, I excelled right away. Through hard work I was able to move to the second team six months after moving to the club. This was a big transition for me and after two years on the second team, I still was not being challenged enough and wanted more.

Although there were a lot of negatives with COVID, I turned it into a positive by training daily with my dad during quarantine.  This time really helped me take the next step in my game.  In the spring of 2021, I was finally invited to join the Colorado Rush Girls Academy team.  It took dedication and commitment, but I had finally accomplished one of my goals. Outside of  soccer, I enjoy spending time with my friends, shopping, and traveling.

Now, I am focused on the next step.  I want to find a school that will allow me to combine my life long love with a quality education.  I am looking for a school that will allow me to keep growing, developing and learning both as a student and a player.