Forget the NFL draft, Saturday at our house was more exciting by a magnitude. Emily tried out for several soccer teams to make sure she had at least one offer to play. We thought she may be at the end of her soccer career when Endurance, her current team,

We left the decision entirely up to Emily after carefully going over the pros and cons of each team.

In the end she decided to play for Sacramento United where she’ll share goalie duties, but will have much greater training and exposure. Soccer rides at college are rare, but still possible to obtain.

For me the deciding factor was a phone call from Sac United’s goalie coach, Dustyn Brim. A professional goalie for 9 years, Brim would hold twice-weekly goalie training sessions, and said Emily has a “drive” that a lot of other goalies are lacking.

On Sac United, Emily will play for Extreme 98 as keeper, number double-zero. She also managed to stay with several of her old teammates on what looks like a very promising team.

It was an adrenaline-filled weekend of tryouts, phone calls and decisions, but when it was all said and done it was clear that Emily’s dedication to her sport is paying off.

Thanks to Sai Saelee for the photos.