Katelyn Nordal, a senior at Western Center Academy, received a $100,000 scholarship to go towards her tuition as Graceland University in Lamoni, Iowa, where she will be attending next fall. If that wasn’t exciting enough, she was also recruited to play for their soccer team!
Katelyn has been playing soccer since she was three years old. She admitted that it wasn’t until she was ten or eleven when she began playing it in a more competitive nature and joined the co-ed club team. She plays soccer all year either for travel or for the Hemet High School’s Girls’ Soccer team. She plays right-middle field for Hemet High, but will be club-forward or left-back when she begins playing for Graceland.
Katelyn said she became interested in Graceland University two years ago during a college showcase. This allowed high school athletes to run drills with coaches from different colleges and gave them the opportunity to speak with the coaches one-on-one about their future plans. Katelyn spoke with Graceland’s Soccer Coach, Ozzie White, for 20 minutes and she made up her mind about playing for the college. Coach White attended a tournament Katelyn would be playing in to see her in action. Unfortunately, she was injured for that game and he was unable to watch her play. Despite not being able to play, Katelyn was still able to make a difference. The team was currently losing, but Katelyn gathered the team for a pep talk and they ended up winning the game. Coach White said he was impressed with her leadership skills and team-player attitude and ended up recruiting her.
Katelyn will not be the first Hemet graduate to attend Graceland. In fact, she said she knows four people from club soccer that are playing for the soccer team. She said she is excited to join another small school like Western Center Academy, saying that she thrives better in those environments. Although she is excited to pursue her career of playing soccer at a collegiate level and continuing her education, she is nervous about leaving her friends and family. She said they have continued to support her dreams and she is extremely grateful for all of them!
Congratulations Katelyn Nordal on your recruitment and scholarship! We look forward to seeing what the future holds for you, and we know you will represent Hemet well during your time at Graceland University.