Athlete of the Week: Bridget Higgins

Senior Bridget Higgins darts between defenders and speeds across the turf toward the goal. Her foot cocks back, swings, connects with the ball and sends it arcing across the box and into the top corner of the net. Her team mobs her instantly, celebrating yet another of Higgins’ goals.Higgins’ soccer career began at a young age. Since she was in kindergarten, Higgins has been an avid soccer player and played for both her town and school teams throughout her elementary school years. Even then, soccer was always Higgins’ main focus. “ I never did any clubs,” Higgins said. “I didn’t even know club soccer existed until I came to Exeter.”Despite her long career in the sport, Higgins’ soccer origins at Exeter were modest. When she first arrived on campus, she was passed over for the varsity squad and instead placed on junior varsity. “My first year at Exeter, I started out on the JV team,” Higgins said. “Over that next summer I worked really hard to get better.”Higgins made it her goal to make the varsity team the following year and strived to make her dream a reality.After returning to school for her lower year, Higgins was accepted onto the varsity squad. Higgins was ecstatic about her transition from JV to varsity, but she harbored some anxiety about the higher level of play.“I was still pretty intimidated by the varsity players, and I wasn’t sure of myself,” Higgins said. “But playing with people who are better than you can make you a better player.”Higgins had a successful start on the varsity team and proved herself to be a valuable member of the team over the course of the next two years. Throughout this time, Higgins refined her skills, forged strong friendships and used her sport as a means to better herself.“I met most of my friends through soccer,” Higgins said. “I’ve learned how to really work on a team and to practice thinking of my teammates first.”This lesson is paramount in a sport like soccer, where communication between teammates can be the difference between a win and a loss. Higgins has also become tougher and more resilient as a result of her training. “I’ve learned how to face things that scare or intimidate me head-on, like a big defender or a hard workout.”Keeping in trend with her elementary school career, Higgins has concentrated the majority of her extracurricular efforts on her sport.“Soccer has really been the only activity outside of school that I have done consistently every year since I was little,” Higgins said. As the only constant activity present in her life, soccer gave Higgins opportunities to learn valuable lessons about both the sport and life in general. “Soccer taught me how to be committed, not only to the sport, but to my teammates,” she said.Despite having played the sport for nearly her entire life, Higgins still never tires of stepping onto the pitch for a practice, a game, or simply to kick a ball around. In practice, Higgins is hard-working, tough and a positive and encouraging presence for others.Upper and fellow team member Margaret Coogan praised Higgins’ upbeat attitude and demeanor. “She's a really positive member of the team. She always has something nice or encouraging to say.” Even off the field, Higgins is approachable and always ready to lend an ear to her teammates and friends. “She's definitely someone you can talk to about whatever, whenever,” Coogan said. “She’s very reliable, and as a teammate I can always trust her to have my back in any circumstance.”Upper Hannah Gustafson also has had a positive experience with Higgins on the team, and cites Higgins’ selfless personality as one of her best traits.“Bridget definitely has to be one of the nicest people I've ever met,” Gustafson said. “She always asks about someone else's day before she ever talks about hers.”Gustafson has played alongside Higgins for two years, and over that time the two have grown close not only as teammates, but as friends. Gustafson also praised Higgins’ speed on the field and her hard work during the games. “Bridget is very fast. She helps the team a lot by using her speed to get past players and serve the ball into the box, or sprinting back on defense to stop a shot on goal.”Higgins’ leadership on the team is also notable and obvious to all. Assistant coach Nolan Lincoln commented on Higgins’ presence on the team. “She’s a really great leader for the rest of the girls. From the little things to the big issues, Bridget is all over it. She and Jacie together form a really good team.” Lincoln added that Higgins’ lead-by-example philosophy established her as a strong role model on the team.Higgins said that she is excited for her last season as an Exeter player and hopes to continue to reap the benefits of her hard work throughout the rest of the term.“My favorite thing about soccer is that feeling you get when your hard work pays off,” Higgins said. “When you pass your juggling record because you’ve been practicing every day, connecting a good pass with your teammates, or scoring on net after taking countless shots during practice. I love knowing that I’ve worked hard enough to actually see improvement.”