Peabody sophmore Marissa Orlando is committed to play Division 1 soccer for UMass Lowell. File Photo
By Harold Rivera
PEABODY — Last fall, Emily Nelson and Marissa Orlando helped lead the Peabody High School girls soccer team to the Division 1 North tournament finals. Peabody fell to Lincoln-Sudbury on penalty kicks, but the 2016 season looks bright for the Tanners, with talented stars like Nelson and Orlando returning. In fact, Nelson and Orlando are set to be teammates for years to come.
Within the last month, the pair committed to play Division 1 soccer at UMass Lowell. What’s even more impressive is that neither of the two made their college decisions as seniors, as most high school athletes do. Nelson will be starting her junior year at Peabody High in September, and Orlando’s only a sophomore.
Nelson, who’ll serve as a junior captain of the Tanners’ 2016 squad, said she feels a sense of relief after making an early decision on her future.
“It’s exciting because I won’t have to go through the the process of applying and making a decision and all that,” she said. “The two seasons that I have left (at Peabody High) leaves me time to focus more on high school and there’s no pressure about college.”
The team leader in goals last season with 22, Nelson added that she feels comfortable with knowing what lies ahead in her future.
“I think it’s a relief that I’m already committed,” she said. “I got multiple offers and it was a bit stressful but I think it’s a relief knowing where I’m going to go. It’ll help me focus more on this season and school as opposed to being undecided.”
Aside from the scholarship offer from UMass Lowell, Nelson said she was also considering offers from Quinnipiac University and the University of New Hampshire. In the end, the center midfielder set her sights on joining the River Hawks.
“They were all great schools and great opportunities,” Nelson said. “Something about UMass Lowell made we want to go there. All the other coaches were so understanding about my decision. I couldn’t have asked for anything better.”
Nelson had the opportunity to play with some of the current members of the team at UMass Lowell with the Boston Aztecs, a Women’s Premier Soccer League team. Nelson also starred on the girls U16 team and the U21 women’s team of the Aztec program.
She began playing soccer at 5, following in the footsteps of her older sister, Erika, who’s on the team at Suffolk University.
“I like being part of a team,” Nelson said. “I like the intensity of soccer. It’s a team and you’re contributing to something. I like that I can help my teammates succeed and they can help me succeed.”
Orlando, who starred for the Tanners last season as a freshman, began playing soccer as an 8 year old. She was chosen for the regional Olympic Development Program, where she received exposure to college coaches. That’s also where UMass Lowell found the talented striker.
After receiving an invitation to the school’s soccer camp, Orlando was offered a scholarship and committed to the River Hawks.
“It’s really amazing,” she said. “I feel their coaching staff is really good. It’s a great program that I feel comfortable committing so early to.”
Orlando said that although she wasn’t expecting to look at colleges as a sophomore in high school, she found a good fit with UMass Lowell after attending the camp.
“I wasn’t really planning on looking at schools this year,” she said. “I ended up going to their camp and I loved the school and I loved the players.”
With three years of high school soccer remaining, Orlando said she doesn’t view her early commitment as a distraction, but rather a source of motivation.
“I think it’s great to know that I’m verbally committed this young,” she said. “It’s going to make me improve more so that when I get to college I’ll be able to play with those bigger and stronger players.”
She added, “The competition is going to be amazing. Everyone’s going to be athletic at Division 1, so I’m going to need to prepare myself.”
Orlando said she hopes to use her next three seasons with the Tanners to improve her skills in preparation for the Division 1 level. Her goal is to continue to play at a high level as she takes the field with new teammates in the coming years.
“I’m hoping that as I grow, I’ll improve on the tactical things,” she said. “I hope that when new players come to the team, I can play with them as well as I play with my teammates now.”
Nelson and Orlando are both looking forward to having the opportunity to play with one another and continue their success as teammates at UMass Lowell in the future.
“Me and Marissa work really well together,” Nelson said. “I’m able to get her the ball and we have a really good connection. I think when we get to the college level we’ll be a strength of the team.”
But for now, they’re committed to leading Peabody to the top of the Northeast Conference — and beyond.
“I feel that as long as we play together we will do very well,” Orlando said. “Hopefully we can get back to the (North) championship like we did last year.”