POCATELLO, Idaho- As a fifth year, Idaho State soccer's Michaela Didericksen has experienced more than your average college athlete.
 
Looking for something for her to do, Didericksen's parents threw her into sports at five years old. 
 
"I was five when I started, kind of like everyone just on the little goals," said Didericksen. "I loved it ever since I started so I stuck with it. My parents just kind of threw me into it to give me something to do. I've done a lot of other sports. I've played tennis when I was younger, I did gymnastics for a while, and I did track in high school so it's kind of a variety."
 
Along with Didericksen, her older brother and younger sister also enjoy competing. Her brother ran track in high school and her sister currently plays high school soccer.
 
"I kind of missed her by a couple of years playing with her but we like to shoot and stuff when I'm at home," Didericksen said. "It's nice when I get to go home for summers and she's still there. We both just started when we were like five years old but neither of my parents actually played soccer. My dad played baseball and my mom was a volleyball player."
 
Despite the siblings' age differences, they found other ways to build their bond.
 
"I think as siblings we kind of fought a lot but then as we got older we got a lot closer," laughed Didericksen. "But yeah, when we were kids we did like to get into trouble and mess around and stuff. We were close but we still fought a lot."
 
Although her parents didn't play soccer, her father still did what he could to help.
 
"They were never official coaches but my dad helped me out a lot," Didericksen said. "He was always doing extra work with me and stuff. He has always kind of been the one for sports so he's pushed me a lot and helped me out when I was younger and even now when I go home he's still working with me.
 
Her mom was always there for her, too.
 
"She's kind of my rock," said Didericksen. "She's my emotional support and she's always there. She's like my best friend, too. I love her. Both of them have had a big influence on my sports career for sure."  
 
This support came in handy during Didericksen's recruiting process. 
 
"They actually are super happy that I came to Idaho State because it's like less than three hours away so they've been to like every home game," said Didericksen. "I'm really close with them."
 
The closeness to home isn't the only thing Didericksen likes about Pocatello.
 
"I wanted to get away from home but stay kind of close so this is a good fit. I love the team aspect that they had here, everyone was super close and had a really good team atmosphere."
 
With four years under her belt, Didericksen knows what it takes to play division I soccer.
 
"I think it's a lot different going from playing in high school and club to kind of having it as a full time job," Didericksen said. "It weeds out the people that just kind of like soccer to those who love it because it takes a big commitment to stick with it in college. I love soccer."
 
Although Didericksen is known for her speed and agility on the pitch, she's not afraid to show what she's got on the track. This last season, Didericksen also competed for the ISU women's track and field team.
 
"I just decided to do that last year when I was still trying to figure out if I was going to take my fifth year for soccer," Didericksen said. "It was to take a break and try something new. I just kind of did it on a whim and I really liked it."
 
Head Soccer Coach Debs Brereton was nothing short of supportive.
 
"She was great about it," Didericksen said. "She actually gave me the spring off to kind of decide what I wanted to do this year. She let me have the whole spring to do track and she was awesome about it. She was excited and she thought that it could help me with soccer, too." 
 
With track and soccer in different seasons, Didericksen was able to compete without an issue. Now this year with COVID-19 pushing the soccer season to the spring, Didericksen is hopeful she can still do both.
 
"It's going to be hard since they're both during the same season now," said Didericksen. "But I think both coaches will be able to work with me a little bit. Obviously soccer is my main priority for the spring but I've kind of talked to both and it seems like they're going to be willing to make it work if my schedule allows it; if games and meets are on separate days and stuff."
 
Didericksen received her undergrad in exercise science and is currently doing the physical therapist assistant program at Idaho State.
 
"I like it a lot," said Didericksen. "Now that I'm into that it's more of what I really want to do as a career so it's more interesting. Last semester of my undergrad I was doing 21 credits so that was really hard. It got me used to balancing the workload. It's a little bit easier now because the stuff I'm learning is what I'm really interested in."
 
Didericksen won't stop there. She has big plans for her future and is striving to achieve those goals.
 
"I'm planning to work as a physical therapist's assistant for a while and then maybe going back to school to get my doctorate in physical therapy. I applied here for the physical therapy program and I actually ended up getting in at the last minute because I was on the waitlist. But I decided it was better for me to do the PTA program instead but I would definitely be interested in doing that here or going home, I haven't really decided."
 
Her inspiration for her career path came with a little experience in injury rehabilitation.
 
"I've torn my ACL twice," Didericksen explained. "I tore one in high school and one my junior year of college. I think just going through physical therapy and being in that environment I just kind of decided that it was something I might be interested in. I worked in a PT office over the summer a couple of years ago and I just really liked it."
 
She looks back on her two injuries as one of the toughest times in her life. However, the tough times called for an inspirational comeback that has allowed Didericksen to continue her soccer career.
 
"It was tough," Didericksen said. "It's definitely tougher the second time that you tear it. I had a really good support system with the team and my family and my coaches. They were really awesome through it so that helped a lot to come back."
 
Since her freshman year, Didericksen has seen a change in who she used to be. 
 
"Hopefully I've matured a little bit," Didericksen laughed. "I definitely had to learn how to balance a lot of stuff and take on a bigger load in soccer and school and stuff. I kind of came to Idaho State not knowing what I was getting into but I think I've got into the groove of things now and grown a lot."