Naperville Central forward Emerson Burke’s final high school season was one for the ages.
A Michigan-bound junior who will graduate early, Burke left others in awe as she set a single-season school record for goals and led the Redhawks to their first state championship game since 1995.
“They play her the ball, and she’s always doing something with it,” Fremd senior forward Sami Serpico said after Burke scored twice during Naperville Central’s 3-2 win on April 30. “She just knows what to do and when to do it, which is really something that’s hard to know. But when you have it, you can do everything.”
Burke, the 2026 Naperville Sun Girls Soccer Player of the Year, could do anything, it seemed. After playing defense last season, she scored 40 goals and also had 17 assists for the Redhawks (22-1-1).
“She took on that role that she was waiting for, and here she is showing off what she can do up top,” Naperville Central junior midfielder Nicole Sacek said. “It’s great to see. I’m really happy for her.
“It’s awesome that I get to play with a player like her. She helps everyone on the team get better.”
Burke, an All-American and the Illinois Gatorade player of the year, believes her teammates made her better too.
“Sure, I have a lot of goals,” she said. “Sure, I had a great season. But I wouldn’t have done it without everyone else.
“I’m getting all these spotlights, but it’s all my teammates making these opportunities for me. I’m just getting the credit for it. Being surrounded by the kind of girls that I am on a daily basis makes me a better person.”
But not every player can take advantage of opportunities like Burke did as she obliterated the single-season school records for goals and points. The previous record for goals was 23, set by Callie Tumilty last season, and Burke’s 97 points eclipsed the old mark of 61.
Despite playing only two seasons as a forward, Burke is tied for second in program history with 53 career goals, is third with 148 career points and is fifth with 42 career assists.
Serpico said Burke is the best player she saw this season.
“It’s really impressive,” Serpico said. “It’s very fun to watch her play.”
Burke combined terrific speed with a burning desire to improve and a cannon of a shot. What was it like to try to block Burke’s shots?
“I try not to,” Sacek quipped.
Opposing teams didn’t have that option.
“She’s fantastic,” Lyons coach Bill Lanspeary said after Burke recorded a hat trick during Naperville Central’s 5-0 win on April 24. “She moves really well off the ball, is great with it, strikes it unbelievably well. She’s a top kid.”
Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said Burke is constantly improving.
“Her understanding of positioning has gotten much better, using her body to kind of shield a little bit and accelerate and be able to hit the ball,” Adams said. “She’s had a tremendous amount of growth over the past two seasons.”
Burke and several teammates regularly practiced once a week before school and on the weekends.
“She’s one of the ones I see when I drive by Knoch Park,” Adams said. “There’s a lot to be said of kids that have that drive and desire and then put in the time and effort that it takes to make them a good player.
“When you talk about American kids, we are so structured with how we treat our kids. There’s not a lot of free time, and Emerson takes advantage of, ‘Hey, I’m going to work when nobody else is working.’”
Burke is the fourth All-American in program history, joining Karen Richter (1986), Casey Krueger (2008) and Tumilty (2025). That’s a great legacy but one that Burke hopes extends beyond the field.
“There’s a lot of kids who came to support us, and a lot of them were my campers,” she said. “I feel it’s super important for me to not necessarily just be the best player on the field but, I think, off the field as well. I’m just super grateful for everything.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
