Dalhousie Tigers women’s soccer head coach Cindy Tye is pleased to announce the commitment of Emily Smith for the 2020-21 season.

Smith is a member of the reigning U17 national champions, Ottawa TFC. She and teammates have also won the Ottawa Cup for the last two years.

On the high school pitch, Smith and her St. Peter’s Catholic High School teammates won the Ottawa City championship before finishing third at the Ontario Federation of School Athletics Associations (OFSAA) championship during the 2018-19 season.

In the classroom, Smith has earned a spot on the Honour Roll each year of high school.

“I am very excited to be moving to Halifax to continue my education at Dalhousie and to play soccer for the Tigers,” says Smith. “Dalhousie has always been one of my top university choices due to its excellent reputation for education, its location, and campus. To be able to go there and continue playing the sport I love is great. When I had the opportunity to meet the coaches and train with the team, they were very welcoming, and I felt as if it would be a great fit.”

Smith has been accepted into the general sciences program at Dalhousie.

“Emily is a defender that can play any position on the back line,” says Tye. “She is physical with strong pace and has the ability to join in the attack both with the pass and on the run. She has also been able to balance her academics maintaining a high standard, on top of her training commitments. We are excited to welcome the competitor that Emily is to our program!”

The Tigers were knocked out in the quarterfinals of the 2019 AUS Championship tournament.