As the Northwestern State Lady Demons begin their regular soccer season this fall, returning sophomore centerback Nicole Henry has already begun to show how instrumental she is to the Lady Demons defensive play.

Born in Ft. Lauderdale, Florida, Nicole transferred to Tomball, Texas during high school. She grew up playing club soccer through middle and high school, eventually leading her to team to a club division championship her senior year.

At Klein Oak High School, she was named Newcomer of the Year as a sophomore and was a three-time all-district selection as a right midfielder and a right back.

In her first season at NSU, Nicole started all 20 games as a true freshman, clocking 1,674 minutes of game play. With a strong defensive unit, she managed to hold opponents to one goal or less in 11 out of NSU’s 20 games, only allowing 1.60 goals and nine shots per game.

“Over half of our team is new, so it’s taken time,” Henry said. “But everything is starting to click, and we’re building the chemistry of a championship-winning team.”

Recently shifting her major from health and exercise science to industrial engineering technology, Henry is setting herself up academically to become successful.

However, the dream of playing professional becomes more tangible with every stand-out performance.