This summer, my friend Emma and I jumped out of our comfort zone, and traveled 10 hours to Chapel Hill, North Carolina. Emma and I have played soccer together for as long as I can remember and the University of North Carolina is the ultimate goal for any girl. UNC has one of the premier women's soccer programs in the United States. Countless of "the greats" spent their college careers at the University of North Carolina. Stars such as Kristine Lilly, Cindy Parlow, Tisha Venturini, and Mia Hamm make UNC famous. Going to this camp felt like achieving a personal goal of mine, being a Tar Heel for a week was one of the most amazing, eye-opening experiences of my life.

The days leading up to camp were some of the most stressful days of my life. Besides worrying about not forgetting anything, I was so worried that I would be the worst one at the camp, and I wouldn't know anyone and that my dream would turn out to be something horrible. I couldn't enjoy the last few days of my beach vacation preceding camp because of how worried I was. I got to the point I didn't want to go, I was so far out of my comfort zone. However, after the first evening I knew how wrong I was.

The dorms were across campus from the fields. It was a hassle to have to walk the 1.5 miles each way at least 3 times a day, but it provided me with a chance to experience the campus. Walking past dorms, fraternities, sororities, shops, classrooms, halls, and lounges, I was able to view a lot of the campus and get to know the layout of the college. This may seem trivial, but feeling like you know where you are in a place that never seemed anything more than a dream, is more satisfying than imagined.

The first day of soccer contained little more than simple drills, introductions, and a scrimmage. I had people from all over the country, of all ages, and even a girl from the Middle East on my team. I'm not sure whether I was lucky and just got put on a team with the nicest girls at camp, or whether soccer girls are just generally outgoing and friendly, but within days we felt like we'd known each other forever. Between being together non-stop for hours and dying together under the North Carolina sun, our team came together and became friends. The kind of friends you know for a week and will remember forever. From Miami to Jersey, Kuwait to Illinois, girls from all over came together with one thing in common, their passion for soccer. These girls were more than just facebook friends, or new people to follow on twitter, they were people who shared the most amazing week of my life with me. These friends, MADE camp the most amazing week of my life.

Besides meeting new campers, I was also introduced to some adults. Some of these people I had read about. Others were new people I would never forget. For example, in charge of the camp is UNC's head coach Anson Dorrance. He gave us speeches, lead activities, and was always walking around checking out what we were doing. I had heard of Anson, read his name in books and heard about him on TV, but meeting him was really special. Some of the former players at UNC came to talk to us such as Brandi Chastian and Cindy Parlow. Meeting idols I look up to, people who did such amazing things in the world of soccer, really motivated me to work harder. Also helping to coach each team were current members of the UNC women's squad. To play at UNC you have to be amazing and seeing these girls living my dream made my dream become more possible and realistic. They showed me that it was possible to become what they were, that they did it themselves. Meeting famous UNC graduates, coaches, and current players help my dream become less than a dream, but a goal.

The playing aspect of camp, although very important, was not what made the experience memorable. We did drills, worked on skills, and scrimmaged. Playing with girls from all ages and all over the country helped open my eyes to what is "out there"- outside of Pittsburgh, outside of Western PA, outside our region. I was not the best person there, nor was I the worst, but I did learn a few valuable things I will take with me to make myself better.

Hopefully I will get the chance to go back to UNC whether it is for camp, or to play at a college level. At this point, I'm not sure whether my dream of being a Tar Heel will ever be achieved, but that's why its a dream. Whether it comes true or not, that depends on me. However, no matter how many times I go back, nothing will ever compare to the trip I took to UNC as a 14year old in July of 2011. Those single 5 days will stick with me for the rest of my life.