Former Duluth Marshall Standout Emilia McGiffert Scores First Collegiate Goal With UMD Soccer

The former Hilltopper scored her first collegiate goal in just her second game and it was also the first UMD goal of their young season.

DULUTH, Minn. – It’s been a few years since the UMD soccer team had a Duluth native on their roster. This year they have three, all from Duluth Marshall, and one former Hilltopper had an opening weekend to remember.

Former Duluth Marshall standout Emilia McGiffert scored her first collegiate goal on Saturday in the Bulldogs loss to Northern Michigan. It was just the second collegiate game for the former Hilltopper and it wasn’t just her first goal, but also the first UMD goal of their young season.

“[Sophia Grenz] Our goalie, she played a phenomenal ball to Lauren [Singstock] who then crossed it and it was a great ball in and I just had to finish it. After that, it was incredible and I was super excited and I was just so excited for my team to finally net our first goal of the season. It kind of helped me gain a little more confidence and feel like I was contributing more to the team. I just felt better,” McGiffert said.

“Emilia’s good on the ball. She’s good at facing opponents with the ball, she’s good at evading opponents. She did get herself forward well instinctively and it really led to her scoring a goal so it was good to see,” head coach Greg Cane added.

The transition for McGiffert has been made a little easier because she has two of her old teammates right there with her. Former Hilltoppers Victoria Thorson and Baamlak Haugen are also in their first seasons with the Bulldogs.

“I’ve played with those two for a really long time and we can just connect on the ball and play each other in. I know a few times we had a good few plays which was awesome and it just like makes you feel a little more comfortable in the field knowing how someone plays and they know how you play and it helps you play a little bit better because you know they’re with you there too,” McGiffert said.

McGiffert will make her home debut on Friday as UMD hosts Rockhurst. We’ll have more from McGiffert and the other former Hilltoppers this Sunday on our Northern Star segment.