Erika Zschuppe
Episode 361
5 JAN 2026
In recently completed NCAA Division I play, she led the nation and set a Florida Gulf Coast University single season women’s soccer record with 21 goals during her just completed senior season, becoming the unanimous Atlantic Sun Conference Player of the Year, among other honors she received for the 2025 season alone. Her prolific season included scoring in ten straight games. In high school she had scored 170 goals in her career, leading her team to the Division III state championship as a junior. Having just graduated, her plan now is to play soccer professionally in Europe. Listen for her testimony about when she “struggled a lot with (her) faith.”
Notable guest quotes:
“It’s been always in my life. My grandparents were born and kind of raised in Europe, so we’ve always had that Catholic background. Growing up, my grandma always brought us to church.”
“(flag football) championship at the Browns Stadium, which is something I could never forget… that was high school. So, like seventeen, eighteen years old.”
“I always just … stay humble because I’m not the best and I’m always going to have someone better than me.”
“I’m a leader in different ways, but when it comes to my success, I try not to talk about it. So, for sure, yes, quiet leadership.”
“Always the freshmen come ask for advice or whatnot. But I always just tell them, you know God’s plan and He has a plan for you. Just follow it and stay quiet, do your own thing.”
“I just had a feeling in my heart and in my chest that Florida was where I was supposed to be led. And I think that feeling came from God and what He wanted in my life. And I do believe that it all happened for a reason, and I’m very happy. I kind of just always left it to God. I prayed that I had a just a healthy body and a healthy future, that I was going to be able to play the sport I love and be around people who supported me.”
“(Philippians 4:13) really brought me to the point where I was able to be calm and in peace with my performance, with my actions and what I was doing throughout my life.”
“Knowing that God was there to strengthen me in hard moments through tough training sessions or little injuries or losing games and missing chances – He was always there.”
“I had an identity beyond my performance, so my worth was not because of my goals or assists or my minutes, but it was my value in that was secured through Christ. Soccer wasn’t something I just did. It was who I was before, and now it’s just something I do. It’s not the person who I am.”
“I found out a lot of my teammates were Catholic or, if not, Christian, and they did practice and they did have a great base in that. So, I did find a lot of strength in my teammates to be able to speak up and talk about that.”
“I did have faithful roommates who like going to church. So that’s where I was able to be comfortable in my own skin and be comfortable in knowing … that I am a daughter of God, and I am a disciple that can be truly shown through my soccer team.”
“I have my devotionals every morning and to wake up … and be able to pray before every day was something exceptional and … I am very proud of that. I started when I came to college, so … it made my day.”
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