Sports

Mepham soccer star headed to Division I ball

Posted

Mepham High School senior Erin Gilroy had completed all the science and math credits she needed to graduate by the end of 11th grade. Then she doubled up on English and social studies classes this fall. That enabled her to graduate from Mepham six months early — and get a big head start on her soccer training at the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Gilroy, 17, of Bellmore, was recruited to play forward and midfield for the Volunteers, who compete in the Southeastern Conference, which is ranked among the country’s top NCAA Division I conferences.

She will play four or five exhibition games for the Volunteers this spring, while getting a head start on her college studies — she wants to become a physical therapist or an athletic trainer.

“I just felt like I was mature enough and ready” to play at the college level, Gilroy said.

She’s been waiting for two years to join the Volunteers — she was recruited in the middle of her sophomore year. Yes, she’s that good.

Gilroy played exclusively for the East Meadow Explosion, a top-rated East Meadow Soccer Club squad, which competes around the country in the Elite Clubs National League. She has traveled as far as California, Oregon, Washington, Texas and Florida for tournaments.

She did not play soccer for Mepham, but competed on the cross-country, tennis and lacrosse teams.

Gilroy said she realizes she’s headed far from home for the next chapter of her education. “I just knew that I wanted to go down South,” she said. “I wanted to be exposed to a different part of the country.” She added that she hopes to make good friends at college and “make a life down there.”

She attended orientation at Tennessee shortly before the winter break.
“Erin has been one of the best female athletes who has come through” the Bellmore-Merrick Central High School District, said Eric Cabellero, the district’s athletic director and a former Mepham assistant principal. “We’re going to miss her.”

Dr. Jennifer Carne, a Mepham assistant principal who played Division III soccer at Brandeis University, offered this advice to Gilroy: “Work hard. Be passionate. Follow your dreams. They will come true. Take it to the next level.”

Gilroy said she has thought about playing soccer after college — she was invited to the U18 National Team camp in October 2014. Right now, though, she has her sights set on making her mark for the Tennessee Volunteers.