AuburnTigers.com
    Off The Pitch: Katy Frierson Senior Midfielder
    Katy Frierson

    Katy Frierson

    Sept. 2, 2011 

    

    

    


    
She has been named to TopDrawerSoccer.com's Team of the Season, a Hermann Trophy semi-finalist, a NSCAA All-America, and she also became the first Tiger to be named to the First Team All-SEC in her first three seasons. But for Auburn senior midfielder Katy Frierson, one of the highest honors she has received has been being named captain of the team by her teammates.

    "It's an honor first and foremost to be deemed leader by the rest of the team," Frierson said. "They trust me with that position, but with it comes a lot of responsibility. I have to make sure I lead by example and make sure I take care of business off the field as well as on the field."

    Frierson has been the perfect leader on and off the field for the Tigers as the Homewood, Ala., native was named the NSCAA Scholar-Athlete of the Year last year, and has been named to an SEC Academic team all three years of her Auburn career.

    "Academics is very important to me, especially as I have gotten farther into my academic career," she said. "Once I found that niche in school that I was interested in, it has become more and more fascinating to me. I enjoy going to class and I enjoy learning and studying."

    On the field, Frierson's successes haven't just come at Auburn as the senior has been able to do what every soccer player dreams of; playing for their national team. Frierson has worked her way through the United States' national system since being a part of the U16 team, and was the youngest member of the U23 that won the Nordic Cup in Sweden in 2008.

    "It's a really cool experience just to play with some great girls," Frierson claimed. "All of the girls there are so much better than I am, so when I go in there, it is just really exciting to get to see how they play and how they take care of themselves off the field and of their body. They do things off the field that help them on the field. Just to get to play with the type of caliber in those camps makes you a better player."

    After she graduates next May with a degree in Political Science, Frierson will look to use the international experience she has acquired in her future endeavors.

    "After I graduate, I would love to continue playing soccer if the WPS is still around, and if I get drafted or if I got an opportunity there," she said. "After that, I really love international development, so I would like to organize a non-profit organization that takes soccer, faith and education to other parts of the world. I would go to grad school and go from there."

    Katy was able to put her love for international development into action this summer as she traveled with the non-profit organization, Soccer Without Borders, to Nicaragua with four other teammates.

    "Nicaragua was awesome! The trip went above and beyond my expectations," Frierson said. "The people there were so amazing. It was amazing to see the way they treated you and made you feel and how special everything is to them. It was a very convicting trip. The people there all love everyone and soccer. There is so much love and passion there in the community for everything. I came back and I wish I had half the joys those people do. It is revealing, because I have everything that should make me happy, but the way those people were, it was really cool."

    Frierson's dream of working with underprivileged countries has benefited immensely because of her international soccer experience. In fact, soccer has been the main reason why Frierson has fallen in love with international work.

    "It's how I developed a passion for it," Frierson said. "I think I have a heart for the world and for people. I just hope that somehow I can use what I have been given, in terms of soccer ability and education, and find that to be meaningful, instead of a selfish endeavor of my own. Turning that into something to help people around the world would be amazing."

    Soccer has allowed Frierson to visit to Argentina, Mexico, Denmark, England, France, Germany, Holland, and Sweden, each giving the midfielder fond memories. But what Frierson will remember the most is what she has been able to do here on the Plains.

    "I have been very blessed to have been able to travel to each of those places, and every one of them is special and means something to me," Frierson stated. "The most meaningful to me, however, is being a part of the team here and the relationships I have been able to build. That is probably going to be the one that is most impactful."

    by Evan Roberts, Auburn Media Relations

    Follow Auburn Soccer on twitter: @AU_Soccer.  


    

    

    


     
    

    

     
    		



    


    





    		

		    		
	
		
			
		
		
		
	
    

    




    	

	
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