A five-sport athlete from Florida is ready to join the Kentucky women's soccer team
Future Kentucky Wildcats soccer player Gabby Rourke really must hate free time.
Rourke, who signed a National Letter of Intent (NLI) this spring to play in the SEC for the Kentucky Wildcats, is coming off a storied career at Atlantic Coast High School (Jacksonville, Florida).
She might just be the Jim Thorpe of the 21st century.
In addition to playing soccer, Rourke also played flag football, tackle football, softball and volleyball – all at the varsity level for the Stingrays.
In tackle football, she was Atlantic Coast’s placekicker and the first female to ever make the varsity team. In flag football, she showed off her athleticism with 87 catches for 1,046 yards and 17 receiving touchdowns. She was also the team captain.
Someone give Mark Stoops a call.
Oh, and she excels in the classroom too.
“Balancing the AP classes, balancing all the sports, all the practices, all the games, it was a struggle,” Rourke told News4Jax in a recent interview.
“I really don’t think it gets talked about enough about academics and how that can really tear down an athlete’s mental health.”
Rourke will play goalkeeper for Kentucky.
“Once I stepped on the pitch when I was around 8 years old I just knew I wanted to play soccer,” Rourke told News4Jax.
“Nothing just has the same passion that I get with soccer. It’s unmatched.”