Addison Merrell '24 Recruiting Profile

I am the oldest of three kids in a military family. We have been moving around the country since the day I was born. I was born in Hawaii, moved to California, over to Virginia, down to Mississippi and am back in Virginia. Growing up in a military family has shaped me in all areas of my life. When my Dad went on deployment for 6-7 months at a time, a lot fell to me to help my younger siblings while my Mom worked. My dad has been on 11 deployments in all and retired last year from the Navy. Both my parents have been my biggest fans since day 1. 

I started playing soccer in Mississippi for first time at about 8-9 years old. I really thought that it was only going to be something to do as a side sport until we left the state. As it turns out, I fell in love and it turned into a complete passion. My family has made big sacrifices for me to pursue this dream. With each move, has come a new team, coaches and teammates. I have had to learn new styles of play and have earned leadership roles on almost every team I've been on. My coaches empowered me to experiment with new positions and while goalkeeper has is my primary position, I have also been asked to play defense and don't mind rocking people on the field. Without soccer, I wouldn't be the social, independent, committed athlete that I am today.