LAKEPORT >> Less than a year from now, senior Lexi Burke of Clear Lake High School will be freshman Lexi Burke of Doane University in Crete, Nebraska.
Burke, 17, recently signed a letter of intent to attend Doane University, a private liberal arts college, on a combination athletic and academic scholarship that will provide her with nearly a full ride at the northeastern Nebraska school where tuition runs in the neighborhood of $40,000 a year.
A star soccer player for the Cardinals who carries a weighted GPA of 4.39, Burke will trade in her Cardinal colors for the orange and black of the Doane Tigers. Her goal upon graduation is to enter medical school and become a pediatrician. She has shadowed doctors at Lake County Tribal Health in Lakeport and said she enjoyed the experience very much.
“I really like kids and I’m pretty excited about it,” Burke said of the possibility of becoming a doctor one day.
“They have a 99-percent placement rate into medical school,” said Lexi’s dad and soccer coach at Clear Lake, Tommy Burke. “That’s one reason why it’s a good fit for her.”
Doane University has had its eye on Burke as a soccer player for a couple of years. She has since visited the campus and said it was her first choice by far over other schools interested in her services, which included University of the Cumberlands in Kentucky, Mills College and University of Redlands. Burke will play either midfielder or forward for the Tigers, who will be graduating one of each after the 2017 season is complete. She is one of only a half-dozen Sloane recruits.
What sold Burke on becoming a Tiger?
“They have great team bonding,” she said. “The team meets for breakfast before each game and for dinner after each game.”
Burke, the daughter of Tommy and Kim Burke, is also excited about moving on to her new surroundings.
“I want to get out and see the world,” she said.
