As a fleet centerfielder and switch-hitting leadoff hitter in softball and a prolific goal-scorer in soccer Julia D. Neilson provided a measure of stability during transitional periods in the soccer and softball programs.
Playing under five different head coaches in eight seasons, Neilson compiled a multitude of individual institutional, conference and regional honors as a shining light for two programs which managed but two winning seasons and one post-season tournament berth during her career.
Neilson attained All-Little East Conference honors three times in each sport – winning conference Rookie-of-the-Year honors as a freshman in each -- and was recognized with regional honors seven times. Fourteen years after graduation, she still is the softball career record-holder with 93 stolen bases and ranks in the top 20 with 157 career hits, and in soccer still ranks fifth all-time in both goals (32) and points (82).
Neilson started 218 of the 219 games in which she appeared in her two-sport career, missing only six total games in two sports.
The 5-foot-7 inch Salisbury native made an immediate impact as a freshman in both sports, when she topped the soccer team in scoring and softball team in hitting. In soccer in the fall of 1998, she tied the program record in her first game by scoring four goals, and went on to second-team All-Metro Region honors that season after leading the Warriors in goals (10) and points (24).
In her softball debut in the spring of 1999, she had two hits, a stolen base and seven outfield putouts. She hit safely in the first six games of her career, batting .611 (11-for-18) with eight stolen bases in those games. She was successful on the first 24 stolen bases of her career, and went on to bat what would be a career-high .393 that first year, leading the team in batting, hits (48), stolen bases (28) and on-base percentage (.422).
In 35 softball games as a sophomore, Neilson set the current season record of 35 stolen bases (in 38 attempts) – tying the program game record of four on April 1  – when she ranked second in New England and tied for tenth nationally with her average of 1.00 steals per game.
In all but one softball season, the two-time team captain played every game – missing five games as a junior -- and was the centerfielder in all 148 of her starts. After batting ninth in the order in her first career game in 1999, Neilson was inserted into the leadoff spot in her second game – a designation which she held throughout her first three seasons. Slotted as the No. 2 hitter as a senior, Neilson dropped a team-high 12 sacrifice bunts, helping leadoff hitter Valarie Gasparino score a team-high 28 times.
Neilson missed only one of a possible 72 matches in her soccer career. As a senior, she matched her freshman totals of ten goals and 24 points and enjoyed the only post-season tournament appearance of her two-sport career. That team posted a 13-5-1 overall record under second-year head coach Chris D’Ambrosio, tying the season mark for overall victories and setting a season record to that point with five conference victories. With Neilson getting offensive support from high-scoring freshmen Jen Ferrari and Erica Figueiredo (all netting ten or more goals) that year, the Warriors were ranked as high as No. 5 in New England and qualified for the ECAC New England Division III Tournament. That team was unbeaten through the first six matches and stood at 9-1-1 in early October, losing as many as two straight regular-season matches only once.
In addition to her athletic accomplishments, Neilson was an E-Club Scholar-Athlete recipient as a senior, and as a junior, became the tenth recipient of the Holly E. Zimmerman Memorial Award, which is presented to a student-athlete majoring in physical education major who exhibits the qualities of academic determination, sincerity, thoughtfulness, and industriousness.
Neilson holds a B.S. Degree in Physical Education. She has one son, Kamden.
