Sofia Erazo-Vitulli is chasing her dreams on the soccer field while studying Year 10 at Matthew Flinders Anglian College. She is also part of our Flinders Elite Athlete Program (FEAP), which aims to guide our student athletes in making the most of their quality education at Flinders while striving to develop and excel in their sport.
Sofia will continue for a second year in the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS) program, taking part in the U15s QAS team, playing a mix of U14 Boys and U23 Women.
In this Q&A profile, we find out what Sofia considers her greatest achievements, big lessons and the goals she has for her future.
Q: Sofia, please highlight some of your sporting achievements.
In 2022, I made the Queensland Football team for the School Sport 10-12 Years and competed at the Nationals in Perth, WA. In 2023, I played for the Sunshine Coast Wanderers U15 NPL football team and towards the end of the year was selected to take part in the Queensland Academy of Sport (QAS) football program for 2024. In 2024, I played for the U14s QAS team, playing in the U17 NPL league. I was also selected to represent Queensland in the State of Origin as part of the Football Queensland U14 Maroon girls' state team. I was fortunate enough to continue in the QAS program and will be taking part in the U15s QAS team, playing a mix of U14 boys and U23 Women.
Q: What are your sporting goals for 2025 and beyond?
A: My goal this year is to get selected for the National Youth Championships in NSW while continuing to improve my game. Long term, I will aim to play professional football, secure a scholarship to play college football in the USA and represent Australia at the next level.
Q: What are your academic goals at Flinders?
A: I am aiming to achieve strong grades throughout my schooling journey. I would also like to continue improving my organisational skills and in Year 12 achieve a high ATAR which will allow me to pursue my goals across academics and sport.
Q: Tell us about the support you access through FEAP?
A: I’m enjoying support thanks to FEAP Director, Ms Nourse. I have reminders to remain on top of my school study so it doesn’t pile up and become overwhelming. This saves me from feeling worried about my workload and staying up late to finish tasks. FEAP has also helped me push towards my goals of studying and sports while making sure I still enjoy life and hobbies outside of school.
Q: Which skills and strategies that you’ve learned from FEAP are proving helpful?
A: I have learnt many new skills and strategies from being in FEAP and going to the guest speakers and workshops available through the program. This has helped me focus on and improve in other areas that are important to succeed which I hadn’t realised before. These include not only physical and technical but also focus on my nutrition and being athlete-tough, which is all about having a strong mindset.
Q: Do you have a favourite FEAP workshop so far?
A: One of my favourite FEAP workshops was with Sports Dietitian Alyssa Koenen. I enjoyed this because I learnt many valuable things connected to fuelling the body the right way which I have put into practice, helping me advance and improve my performance.
Q: How else do you benefit through FEAP?
A: What I enjoy about FEAP is how much it has helped me grow my skill sets. I’m also grateful to be able to hear from athletes who have been in our position to learn what they did to improve, the hard work they put in, the setbacks they had to overcome and how they thrived to achieve greatness.
Q: Do you have a sporting role model?
My sporting role model is Olivia Latimer, a former Matilda and was also my U13 Wave futsal coach in 2022. Even though she isn’t coaching me anymore, she has been a huge support throughout my journey to where I am now, encouraging me, seeing my potential and making sure I am enjoying the game. She is not only a great coach but also an amazing person. Since I met her 3 years ago she has helped me grow as not just as a player but as a person, and I am so grateful to have her in my life supporting me every step of the way.
To learn about more of our FEAP athletes, visit the FEAP home page here.
