El Dorado’s Henry signs with Louisiana Tech

Carson Henry was excited when the women’s soccer coach at Louisiana Tech accepted her invitation and showed up to watch one of her high school games last season. Her dream game turned into a nightmare, when she suffered a season-ending knee injury during the match.

“I was worried that he would not consider me anymore and move on,” Henry recalled.

As it turned out, she didn’t need to worry.

Wednesday, Henry signed a letter-of-intent to play soccer at Louisiana Tech.

“LATech is a great school. I love the campus, the kinesiology programs they offer, the town of Ruston, and the closeness to home,” she said.

“I ultimately chose LATech over Hendrix due to the programs LATech offers, and campus fit for me. With many of my teammates being from other countries, I will be exposed to different cultures and styles of play that I would not have been able to see playing elsewhere. It is also a Division I school, and it has been my dream from a young age to play Division I soccer.”

Despite playing in just eight games last season, Henry led the Lady Wildcats with 14 goals and was tied for second on the team with seven assists.

Athletic and versatile, she brought skills that did not take college coaches a long time to notice.

“I am 5 feet, 10 inches tall. That made me stand out to coaches who watched me play,” she said. “Also, my ability to kick and control the ball was one of their main focuses as well. I need to work on my aggressiveness and playing at 100 percent every game no matter the circumstances.”

Henry started playing soccer at 3-years-old at the Boys & Girls Club of El Dorado. She began playing on a travel teach coached by her father at the age of 8.

At 10, she signed up for the Olympic Development Program, tried out for Arkansas United and began traveling to Little Rock two nights a week for practices. She has played with Arkansas United since.

“Soccer has always been in my life, therefore, I could not imagine my life without it,” she said. “I knew that I was not ready to put my cleats on for the last game of my senior year and just be done playing after. I am so excited to take advantage of my opportunities that are in front of me these next few years.”

Despite her success on the pitch, Henry had to work to get noticed by college coaches.

“The recruiting process was very stressful to be honest. I sent out emails to coaches of colleges I was interested in playing for. I invited them to watch me play in tournaments for my Arkansas United Club team and, also my high school soccer games for El Dorado.”

That made the injury she suffered even more devastating.

“I was very upset. Not only because the coach of the team I wished to play for so bad was there, but because I had never thought that something like that would happen and especially not that important night,” she said. “That is how life works though. You get pushed down and you have to work hard to get back up.

“My recovery process was slower than I wanted it to be. I was in a knee stabilizer for around six weeks and on crutches for four of those weeks.

“I went to physical therapy with Clint Rhodes. He is a family friend who has his own business and he knew that I was upset about my injury. He pushed me from the very beginning of therapy to the very end, one hour for two days a week. I had so many doubts about my recovery, how quick I would be back, if I showed the coach enough during my time in the game, and yes, if I would play the game I loved afterward.”

Sometimes life has a way of interrupting the best laid plans. Henry refused to be derailed and is eager to get back on the field for her senior season before moving on to the next level.

“Being able to have this opportunity makes me feel like all my hard work and dedication has paid off,” she said.

“Being recognized and getting offered to play at a Division I school is only going to make me try harder this year during my high school season to stay in shape. I also do not want to go backwards in my playing ability. Everything I do during my senior season needs to be the best I can do and at 100 percent effort.”

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