Tumwater’s Emalyn Shaffer took the next step in her athletic career Thursday morning, signing her Letter of Intent to play soccer at the University of Idaho in front of family and friends.
“I really liked the coaches and the team environment,” Shaffer said when talking about her visit to Moscow. “They seemed really fun and I felt like I would have a good time.”
Idaho coaches first noticed Shaffer at a showcase, and they’ve made appearances at some of her home games over the past couple of years.
Shaffer ended her Tumwater career with EvCo Player of the Year, and she was also named the EvCo Offensive Player of the Year in 2023 after scoring 27 goals in 17 games. With Shaffer leading the charge, the T-Birds went unbeaten in league play and won the EvCo title both of the last two seasons.
Over the last two years, Shaffer said that she feels she’s become a better teammate, and she’ll miss her teammates when she heads east next fall.
“I’ll miss the people (here) the most,” Shaffer said. “I feel like I’ve become more of a team player, and I’ve grown a lot in that aspect.”
Idaho is a Division I team in the Big Sky Conference, and the Vandals are coming off a trip to the Big Sky Title Game a couple of weeks ago. It’s the fifth straight season that they’ve made it to at least the conference semifinals, and they made the NCAA Tournament in 2023.
