Vicksburg soccer star Amari Johnson signs with East Mississippi CC

“I’m proud of myself for the work I’ve put in. A lot of people say they want to do stuff but they don’t work on it, so I’m proud that I stuck to stuff like practicing at home. Even when I didn’t want to go to practice I went,” Johnson said. “This year since I was a captain I had to show my leadership skills and step up, especially with our shortage of players. Not every year is the best but you’ve got to make the best of what you’ve got and I’m proud that I’ve been able to adapt to the changes.”

Johnson joined a growing pipeline of Warren County players who are headed to East Mississippi. She’s the fourth player from the county to sign there in the past two years. Johnson said another Vicksburg native is to credit for that.

Ryan Theriot, a former St. Aloysius star, is an assistant coach at East Mississippi. He’s mined his hometown for talent, including recruiting Johnson.

“The assistant coach, Ryan (Theriot), is from Vicksburg so he saw me. He emailed me asking if I was interested in playing soccer, so I said yes, if I get the opportunity I would be happy to,” Johnson said. “It’s very surreal, because honestly I did not think I would be playing soccer at this level. It’s hard to get looked at for soccer, especially in Vicksburg. Sometimes Vicksburg gets overlooked.”

During her high school career Johnson has played nearly every position on the field at one time or another, including keeper. She wasn’t sure where she’d play at East Mississippi, and doesn’t really care as long as she’s in the lineup.

“One time I had to play striker, and the next midfield. One time I had to go to defense. It was stressful. But then I’m kind of happy because when I get to college we’ll have other people to play all these positions. It was good for me to be versatile,” Johnson said. “If I have to change positions to play I definitely will, because I do want to start by the end of my freshman year.”

More than anything, she just wants to play and continue to leave her mark.

“I’m really excited to play at this next level so I can tell my kids I played soccer in college,” Johnson said. “I just want to thank my teammates from soccer, softball and volleyball, my coaches, and my mom and grandmom. I love all of y’all very much.”