Brooke Redfern, Devin Kos, Emily Martell, Kristin Dobransky and Kristin Buchanan, all recent graduates of Bellefonte Area High School, have been given the opportunity to play soccer at the collegiate level.
While all five are playing collegiate soccer, they will be representing different colleges and universities.
Redfern’s soccer career will continue her freshman year while she plays for the University of Pittsburgh at Bradford.
“I’m not really sure what made me start soccer. When I was five, soccer looked fun, which would make me want to play, so I did,” said Redfern. “It hasn’t always been my main goal. At one point I thought I would never want to play in college.”
Redfern did not only play high school soccer, but played on as many teams as possible to improve herself.
“I have put years into soccer. I have played on multiple teams and made soccer a top priority,” said Redfern. “I think my goals for college are the same as they have always been. I want to play well, not let my team down, and win. Another goal this up coming year is to be the starting goal keeper, which will take a lot of work.”
Kos will continue her career at Juniata College.
Kos always kept soccer in her plans for the future, but also concerned herself with being well-rounded in other walks of life.
“In middle school, I thought I would play professionally. As a freshman in high school I thought I would play at a Division I college. As the years went on, and I grew interested in other things such as my academics and career after school, I realized that I wanted to play soccer, but also wanted to be involved in other things in college,” said Kos. “Competing at a Division I or even Division II level, I felt, was not what I wanted to put all of my effort in while I tried to focus on excelling in my academics in college. So to answer your question no, it has not always been my goal to play college soccer, my goals have changed. The one thing that has stayed constant all throughout my life though, is my love for soccer.”
Despite Kos’s extracurricular activities, she still kept soccer as one of her top priorities, which allowed her to plan for her college career.
“I have put countless hours into my soccer career. If I were to legitimately count how much time I have spent playing soccer, or watching soccer, or talking about soccer, it would probably almost add up to all the years that I’ve played, from the first time I touched a soccer ball till now,” said Kos. “My goal for playing college soccer, and my goal for whenever I am playing soccer is to always learn something new. Whether I am learning a new playing technique or fitness technique, I try to take something home each time and work on it.”
Martell will be playing for Allegheny College this fall.
Soccer has been a driving force in Martell’s life for many years. As she grew as a person, her love for soccer evolved as well.
“When I was younger, I always wanted to be a Lady Lion and be the next Mia Hamm. However, I’m pretty satisfied where I’m at now, going to a great school with a competitive soccer program,” Martell said.
Although Martell is satisfied with her current accomplishments, she still has plenty of goals for the future.
“I hope to get an All-American when I’m in college, but besides that, I just hope to compete and play as much as possible and be the best I can possibly be,” she said.
Dobransky will continue her soccer career at Pennsylvania State’s Altoona Campus.
Playing soccer in college was always a dream for Dobransky, but that dream because a reality due to her ambition during on and off seasons.
“A few of my high school teammates and I never really stopped playing,” said Dobransky. “We played year round. We did spring travel teams, summer camps, fall season, winter indoor leagues and other random travel teams.”
Dobransky goals and aspirations regarding her collegiate level soccer career had to evolve due to an injury.
“I was going to be considered as a starting defender but with my ACL injury I will not be able to play until the spring,” said Dobransky.
Despite the setback, Dobransky’s goals have not changed for the future.
“I would just like to improve my game and have fun. Division 3 is not as serious as D-1 sports so I’d like to simply stay fit, meet other athletes, and enjoy the game,” she said. “I think it will be so much fun to play against a few of my former teammates. I will play against Emily, Brooke, and Devin’s teams.”
Buchanan will continue her soccer careen at Indiana University of Pennsylvania. Buchanan will be redshirted her freshman year due to a full roster and 10 seniors that will be on the team.
Much like the other girls, soccer has always been a focal point in Buchanan’s life.
“I always just assumed that I would continue playing soccer for as long as I can because it’s really so different than everything else that I like to do. It’s different in a way that makes it so much better and more enjoyable. Plus, soccer players have great personalities. It will be a great way to make new friends in college,” said Buchanan. “I’ve been playing soccer for over ten years now. I started out playing in the spring and the fall like most players do, but when I was eleven I joined a club team and soccer became a year round thing for me. We had Bellefonte soccer in the fall, club trainings in the winter and spring, club games in the spring and tournaments over the summer. And then there’s all the time when I just went outside and a couple of us would kick a ball around. I’ve probably spent more time playing soccer than sitting in classes in school.”
While Buchanan challenged herself on every team she was on during high school, college will be no different for her.
“I hope to be able to play my game and do well to help win games. I hope to be able to send good balls into the box and score lots of goals,” Buchanan said. “It will be a lot different than Bellefonte soccer where all that was easy. I’m not really sure what to expect yet so I just hope that I will be able to be an exceptional player and have a really great time.”
