Delta BC soccer player headed to Oregon school this fall
Julia Fetcher will focus her attention solely on soccer next fall at Pacific University
Julia Fetcher will have to move to Oregon next fall to finally focus on just one sport.
The 12th-grade student at South Delta Secondary will continue her soccer career at Pacific University in Forest Grove after accepting a scholarship offer from the NCAA Division III School. It was in September that Fetcher impressed Boxers head coach Chelsea Davis during a recruiting camp.
“It was just really good chemistry and the program is going through a bit of an overhaul, so it’s a good situation,” said Fetcher, who plans to study kinesiology. “It has always been a dream of mine to continue my education and play football at the same time.”
The midfielder currently plays at the Metro U18 level with the Delta Coastal Selects and last June helped the South Delta Sun Devils win their second provincial title in school history.
Fetcher pursued her soccer dream while thriving on the ice as an elite ringette player. She will end her career playing for Team BC at the Canada U19 Championships in Regina in April and was also a substitute for the last Canadian Winter Games.
“It all started when I was little and taking ice skating lessons,” Fetcher said. “I just did a little free skating and I think I was about 10 when my boyfriend got me into the sport. It just sounded really cool back then and there was this program called ‘Springette’ that a lot of girls do because it’s after the season and you can rent gear to try it out.”
Years of hectic schedules followed, with competitive seasons for both sports happening at the same time. At one point, Fetcher put competitive football on hold before continuing with her juggling act.
“It was a challenge. It’s a big commitment for both teams because it’s happening at the same time,” said Fetcher. “There were many days where I go straight from one game to the next.”
She hopes to wrap up her youth football career with a good run in the upcoming Coastal Cup playdowns and help the Sun Devils have another run to provincial glory. Fetcher is among a number of important returnees. Already in the 8th grade she got to know the extremely successful program of Stephen Burns and Brent Sweeney.
“We’re trying to get back to the Provincials (for a record) 20th year, so it’s a big deal. We just want to keep the strong environment of SDSS football going,” she added. “We lost a couple of seasons to COVID but I remember my year in 8th grade and (Senior Standout) Brea Gallagher being my idol. (laughs) I even got her to sign my yearbook.”