On Feb. 1, FHN held their annual signing day for student athletes across the school who are furthering their education and athletic careers at various colleges. Senior AnnaRose Eldred committed to Missouri Baptist University for soccer. Eldred has been playing soccer for 14 years and has played at various clubs across the area including Lou Fusz, Missouri Rush, Sporting St. Louis and JB Marine. Typically, playing club soccer is one of the best ways to create a path to college soccer.

“Club soccer taught me a lot about playing as a team,” Eldred said. “[Club soccer] allowed me to get recognized by college coaches in tournaments and other events.”

Originally, Eldred was going to commit to Fontbonne University in St. Louis. Fontbonne plays in NCAA Division three, which doesn’t allow money to be granted for athletic scholarships. Eldred chose Missouri Baptist because she could get more money in scholarships during her tenure at the university.

“Both universities are close to home,” Eldred said. “Staying close to my family is really important to me, so an in-state school was really important to me.”

Eldred, in her 14 years playing soccer, has played a variety of different positions like center back, winger and central midfield. The versatility of Eldred makes it easy to get game time and play frequently as she can adapt to any role that she plays very quickly. As of recently, including club and high school soccer, Eldred played mostly center back (defense) unless there was an opportunity to play forward.

“AnnaRose is a great player to coach because of the ability she has to play just about anywhere on the field,” coach Mark Olwig said. “She is a great player and deserves the opportunity that she has right now.”

Eldred is attending Missouri Baptist University with senior Lucy Fajatin, who is currently verbally committed to MoBap for softball. The two are staying in a dorm on campus together for at least their first year on campus. Eldred is looking to become a business major as of right now and Fajatin is looking to go into the medical field. 

“I’m really excited that I get to dorm with someone that I already have a good connection with,” Fajatin said. “It makes the process of starting college a little less stressful, socially.”