Goffstown Girls Varsity forward, junior Elle Lavalliere, recently received a full-ride scholarship to Butler University. She received the call on September 12. When Elle made varsity as a freshman, she was excited to be part of the team and the community. Lavalliere knew that she wanted to play soccer throughout college ever since she was little. As she excelled at the sport and progressed her skill set, she was inspired by what she could become and realized she wanted to be a great athlete.

After making Varsity as a freshman and continuing to work hard, Elle was looking for a college that would put in the same time and effort into her as she did to them. While describing the scouting process, she talked about the struggles of going out for different schools such as the roller coaster of emotions and not knowing whether coaches are interested in a player or not. “You just have to trust that you’ll end up where you’re meant to be,” she expressed, was the belief that kept her going.

After first visiting Butler University on August 8th, she continued to think about the school and what her career could look like there. Before making the decision to commit, Lavalliere planned a second visit at the end of August. It was then that she really fell in love with the school. Elle felt that she would fit in at Butler as she expressed that the coaching staff was phenomenal and the players were like family. She felt as though they already cared about her. 

When Lavalliere received the call from Butler University, she described the situation as both exciting and nerve-wracking. It was finally hitting her that this was her reality for the next six years. A full ride to most just means that they won’t have to pay for college, however, to Elle, this proved to herself that all her hard work and dedication was paying off. She talked more about how getting a full ride is incredibly rare, “It shows that when a school really believes in a player, they’re willing to put a lot on the line for them.” She explained how she felt extremely proud of herself because this was something she had always strived for.

Goffstown Girls Varsity center-back, junior Cheyenne Frost, described Lavalliere as an empowering forward who is always there to make a play. Cheyenne also made varsity as a freshman along with Elle. She expressed that Lavalliere is an encouraging teammate and keeps team spirits high, “Elle makes the environment more competitive in the best way possible and always wants the team to succeed.”