Emeil Bennett '24 Recruiting Profile

I've been competing as a multi-sport student-athlete for most of my life excelling from the classroom to the court to the field. But, soccer is the perfect combination of all the things that I love: running, the wind on my face and competition. From age 7 to 12, I played soccer on a boys' travel team - that's how much I love soccer. I'm from a mid-size town in Kansas. We just didn't have any girls' teams my age, but I was lucky enough to have our local Rec League programmer see my love of the sport and put me on his boys' competitive team. I played with those boys for 5 years. They are like my brothers now.  Being from a smaller town does make pursuing soccer a challenge.  From July to November, I play for a club team (girls now) an hour away from home - two hours round-trip with a two-hour practice twice a week plus all the games are out of town on the weekends. It has taken extra dedication, perseverance and resources for me to pursue soccer. Starting in March, I play for my hometown high school soccer team. The experience that my teammates missed out on when we were younger makes for a challenging season.  I've been asked many times why I don't just play club soccer year-round but my family and I decided long ago that I would support my hometown team no matter what. I feel like this has taught me lessons that I would never learn on a D1 or D2 club team.  Leadership, patience, support, perseverance.  My high school team plays some goliaths in our league but, I always go in with the intent to play my best, help my teammates and never give up. No matter the odds. All these unique experiences have made me a better soccer player and have taught me to constantly adjust to whatever life brings.