BREAKERS GOALKEEPER JOHNSON'S DREAM COMES TRUE
When she was nine years old and not long after meeting then Santa Cruz County Breakers soccer coach Devvyn Hawkins MacBeth - a starting midfielder for the 2001 National Champion Santa Clara University Broncos and former member of the U.S. Women's National Team – Emily Johnson began to dream of playing college soccer at Santa Clara.
Seven years after her dream began, Johnson – a team captain and goalkeeper for the Santa Cruz County Breakers 94G White squad – has verbally committed to Santa Clara and will begin playing for the Broncos in the Fall of 2013. In addition to Santa Clara, Johnson was recruited by several schools with strong soccer programs including 2007 National Champions USC, the University of Utah, the University of Montana, San Diego State, and Cal State Northridge.
The Santa Clara University women's soccer program has a long history of success with twenty-two NCAA Tournament appearances, ten College Cup appearances, and one national championship. The Broncos finished their 2011 campaign with a successful record of 13 wins, 2 losses, and 6 ties and were ranked 20th in the nation among Division 1 women's soccer programs.
An excellent student, Johnson plans to major in mechanical engineering at Santa Clara with an emphasis in robotics in the hopes of pursuing a career in theme park engineering.
Johnson began her Breakers career when she was nine years old. Recently, as she approached her seventeenth birthday, Johnson reflected on what her experience playing for the Breakers has meant to her soccer career and life:
"It's been a privilege to play for the Breakers over the past eight years," Johnson said. "The coaches and staff have given me the tools to progress to the next level of soccer, and I will always be grateful for the part this organization has played in my life.
"I'd like to thank my Breakers coaches (Ashley Edgar, Larry Biggam, Mike Arzabal, and Devvyn Hawkins MacBeth), my Breakers goalkeeper coach Matt Biggam, Breakers Director of Coaching Paolo Carbone, and Breakers Team Manager Tom Morano, as well as Breakers staff members Jessica Perkin and Frank Barsamela, for their encouragement, for the countless hours of training, for their helpful advice, and for being so supportive of not only my soccer career, but of me as a person. I would not be where I am today without their influence in my life.
"I'd also like to thank my Breakers teammates over the years. They are my supporters, my fans, my lifelong friends. I hope that I have been (and will continue to be) the same for them.
"My Breakers experience has been one of the highlights of my life so far, and I would enthusiastically recommend the Breakers to any young soccer player wanting to develop their skills and reach a higher level of play."
