Madison “Maddy” Gilhool thrives when she’s part of a team. Whether she’s on the soccer field or planning an event as a Community and Therapeutic Recreation (CTR) student, she’s inspired by connectivity and community.
And as she graduates later this month, she will surely miss the UNC Greensboro community, especially her soccer family.
“I loved playing soccer at UNCG; it’s hard to think it’s over,” she says. “I’ll miss my teammates the most.”
Hard Work On the Field
As a forward on the Women’s Soccer team, Gilhool has been a stand-out, leading her team
in goals (9) and game-winners (5) in her senior season. These accolades rank among the leaders in the Southern Conference (SoCon), as she tied for the conference lead in goals, led in game-winners, and tied for second place in total points (19).
“I would not have played like I did without my teammates surrounding me,” she says. “This is the closest our team has ever been. It was a group effort.”
The tightly-knit team made an impressive run in this year’s SoCon Tournament, upsetting top-seeded Chattanooga in the semifinals, thanks to Gilhool’s game-winning goal in double overtime. “It was one of the best goals I ever scored in my life,” she says. “Without my teammates, we wouldn’t have even been in that position. We all wanted the same thing.”
Hard Work Off the Field
She attributes her success as an athlete to her strong work ethic and ability to learn from her mistakes. These traits have served her well off the field too.
“You should always work hard. Even if you don’t know how to do everything, when someone sees how hard you work, that’s what they’ll remember,” she says.
Gilhool will graduate with a bachelor’s degree in Parks and Recreation Management: “ You don’t really hear about the CTR major at other colleges. It’s broad and prepares you to branch out into different paths in the recreation and park industries.”
One of her most memorable assignments was planning events in partnership with Kernersville Parks and Recreation.
“The coronavirus obviously made it hard to host events, so we had to be creative. We made a drive-in movie theater with supplies from different companies and threw a ‘Hocus Pocus’ event where kids could get candy and food from food trucks, see characters, and use our photo booth,” she says. “It was awesome to see the community get together during a difficult time.”
Bringing the community together and enhancing individuals’ health, wellness, and quality of life in an inclusive environment are fundamentals of CTR’s values, and Gilhool is excited to put them into practice.
“People don’t understand how much it takes to set up and take down an event. I like getting to watch everything come together,” she says. “There’s a sense of pride, too, like, I made this event happen. And then you get to see the smiles on everyone’s faces and people doing what they love. It’s really rewarding.”
Hard Work In the Field
After graduation, Gilhool plans to stay in the Greensboro area and work locally. She has been offered a full-time position in Operations with NC Fusion, a Triad non-profit organization that offers sports programs for youth and adults.
“I’m happy to stay in the area. I like the culture here. I also love how many things there are to do, how you can travel 30 minutes and go hiking or two hours and be at the beach,” she adds.
Her time at UNCG gave her the opportunity to rise as a leader, creating scoring opportunities for her team and empowering communities to be active and healthy. And at the Commencement ceremony on December 9, you’ll see her leading the graduates in the Turning of the Tassels.
“UNCG gave me an amazing opportunity to meet people from all over the world, from different majors and backgrounds. I loved my experience here.”
#UNCGRAD, Celebrate With Us!
Graduates are invited to share their accomplishments on social media by using related “digital swag,” tagging posts #UNCGGrad, and using Commencement-themed Snapchat filters at the Greensboro Coliseum. The University will display #UNCGGrad-tagged Instagram and Twitter posts live before the ceremony. Graduates are also encouraged to use the Commencement 2022 persona in the UNCG Mobile App.
Story by Amanda Saber, AMBCopy
Photography provided by UNCG Athletics
Video by David Row, University Communications
