Ever since her first visit to Utah’s campus with former Ute soccer player Megan Trabert, freshman Holly Daugirda knew she had to come to Utah.
Daugirda said it wasn’t the first time she had visited the campus, but it was the first time she had gone to a college class. After going to one of Trabert’s classes that day, the two headed to the training room where Daugirda got the chance to see what it was like to be a student-athlete.
“I just had this feeling — it’s kind of weird to say that because it’s really cliché — but I just had this feeling that this is where I needed to be,” Daugirda said. “So right then and there, I decided I wanted to come here.”
Being from Salt Lake City, Daugirda only lives 10 minutes away and attended Skyline High School, which allows her whole family to come and watch her compete. And, if any of her extended family lives near any Pac-12 school, they are able to go and watch her as well.
Her family even got the chance to watch her play her first collegiate game against Weber State, and also score her first career goal. After her first victory of the season, Daugirda not only felt proud of herself, but also felt proud of her team.
“Overall, I think the team did really well, especially since it was our first game,” Daugirda said. “It was a good opportunity for us to connect and be more comfortable with one another, and I think it’s coming along, and it is going to get better.”
Daugirda felt that her first game went really well, especially since she scored. She added that she was not expecting that outcome, and it made her really happy with her performance that day.
“Scoring that goal was really exciting,” Daugirda said. “There was so much adrenaline going through my body. I was a little shocked. I was asking myself it was cool, but I was really excited.”
Prior to coming to Utah, Daugirda play for the United States in the Under-19 Women’s National Team, and she was was named Utah’s NSCAA Player of the Year in 2015. She also received the Gatorade Player of the Year award after finishing her storied career at Skyline.
In her senior season in high school, she scored 29 goals, 77 for her whole career, and this was marked as the most in 4A as well as the fifth-most in the state of Utah. Daugirda was named a Fall All-Star, put on the All-America Watch List, and she was ranked the No. 45 forward in the nation.
Of her many accomplishments, Daugirda led her team to a state title and an appearance in the finals three times. She was named the Region 7 MVP three years in a row.
Now, competing for the Utah soccer team, Daugirda hopes to accomplish more as the 2016-2017 season progresses.
“We will just take it game by game and work on winning,” Daugirda said. “We especially need to work on the chemistry with the team. Hopefully, we can get a Pac-12 Championships title, but a lot of work will have to go into that. We will just have to see from there.”
Head coach Rich Manning said Daugirda has performed well in her first games as a Ute. He added that she brings a lot to the team, and he is looking forward to her building on her performance from that night.
“Im sure it was a dream come true for her,” Manning said. “It is always good to get some firm footing when you take those first steps in college, especially as a freshman. I’m very confident that she is going to have a great season, and I think she laid a good foundation for the season.”
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