With players on the women’s soccer team from all across the country, as close as Madison and as far away as California, this year’s team has been a melting pot of talent from all over.
The total turnaround from a year ago, 5-11-3 overall and 2-7 Big Ten, to this year’s record of 9-7-3, 4-4-2, can be associated with this diversity, but one particular player sticks out from the rest.
She says ‘water fountain,’ not ‘bubbler,’ and says ‘pop’ instead of ‘coke.’ Her name is Amy Vermeulen, a native of Saskatoon, Saskatchewan, Canada.
A true sophomore here at the University of Wisconsin, Vermeulen was named Big Ten player of the week Monday for her two-goal, three-assist weekend that helped the team tie for fifth in the Big Ten and assured the fact that the Badgers will play Michigan State in the first round of the postseason playoffs.
Playing last year as a true freshman gave Vermeulen the experience that has helped her to blossom this year.
“She’s a very good player, it’s pretty obvious,” head coach Dean Duerst said. “She has a high level of technical skill and just really quick feet. With her experience with team Canada and its national teams program, she is a battler and a Big Ten kind of player.”
Vermeulen spent last summer playing for Canada’s U19 (Under 19) women’s soccer team in the inaugural FIFA U19 Women’s World Championships. With her fellow Canadians, she helped bring home the silver. But instead of feeling fatigued from a non-lackadaisical summer, she has carried that momentum to her play for Wisconsin and is tied for sixth in assists in the Big Ten with six assists on the season.
After the soccer season is done, Vermeulen will begin her second season as a UW athlete on the women’s hockey team. With so much non-stop sports, you have to wonder if she ever gets tired.
“Well, everybody gets tired, but I think I just have fun doing everything,” Vermeulen said. “I like to do it, so I don’t really think about that too much.”
Coming from a town about the same size as Madison, roughly 220,000, Vermeulen has adjusted and made Madison her home away from home.
“It’s not a huge adjustment at all,” Vermeulen said. “It’s just like a regular adjustment, just like any college student would make. The city size is pretty much the same. Madison and Canada really aren’t that much different. I was away too much in high school, so there’s no real homesickness.”
With the playoffs just around the corner, Vermeulen has stepped up as a team leader to make the final push to help in the playoffs. Seeing an unusual amount of playing time for a sophomore has helped her step into the role of a team leader.
“I think I feel more comfortable playing,” Vermeulen said. “I just go out there and do the best I can every game.”
With each week bringing light on a new, younger team star, this postseason will show if the Badgers are saving the best for last. The main question is: Do they have what it takes to bring the Big Ten tournament title back to Madison after eight years?
Well, we shall soon see, but with young stars like Amy Vermeulen gunning and bringing a new flavor to the Wisconsin mix, things are looking up.
