When high school students are looking at potential colleges, some like to visit schools close to home. Salisbury senior Caylin Meikrantz is not one of those students. She’s always dreamed about attending college in the south.

At this time next year, Meikrantz will have achieved two long-time goals.

Meikrantz, who recently committed to Elon University in North Carolina, will also continue her soccer career at the Division I level. Her decision came back in April, just months before a historic senior season at Salisbury got underway.

“I had always dreamed of going to a college down south, which made Elon stand out over the other two,” said Meikrantz, who also drew Division I interest from Quinnipiac University and Manhattan College. “Schools from all three divisions expressed interest in me as well.”

The main difference between those three Division I programs was that Elon was the only southern college of those choices. When she made the eight-hour trip for her official visit, she had no doubts about where she wanted to spend the next four years.

“Immediately I knew Elon was the perfect fit for me academically and athletically, which made the decision easy,” Meikrantz said. “The campus made me feel at home more than any other school did, and I knew it was a place I would be happy at all four years.

“Elon was always in my top three college choices, and when I visited the first time in the spring I was really impressed with the campus, the coaching staff and the whole team atmosphere. The coaches inspire their players to be successful and have a competitive drive on and off the field.”

Traveling has always been a passion of Meikrantz’s.

“Elon’s campus is known for how beautiful it is, and it had a southern charm that appealed to me,” Meikrantz said. “The school is ranked No. 1 in the nation for study abroad, which will help me gain new experiences. The soccer team goes to Costa Rica every four years which will be very fun.”

Salisbury’s all-time leader in assists with 48 for her career was also fond of how welcomed she felt by the Elon players.

“At my official visit this fall, I got to spend a lot of time with the current freshmen, staying in their dorms and experiencing what it’s like on game days and what they do other than just soccer,” Meikrantz said. “All the girls were really welcoming and meeting a few of my future teammates in my class was exciting.”

Elon plays in the Colonial Athletic Alliance and is coming off a 7-9-3 season this past fall. The team’s last conference championship came in 1999 when the Phoenix won the Big South Conference. The Phoenix won six conference titles from 1991-1999.

“I’m excited to go to school in North Carolina and experience another part of the country,” Meikrantz said. “The conference that they play in is very competitive and sends several of its teams to the NCAA tournament each year. Also, several schools are not far from the Lehigh Valley, which gives my parents and friends an opportunity to see me play.”

In her final season with the Lady Falcons, Meikrantz scored 21 goals and is now sixth on the school’s all-time scoring list with 43 goals. She also had 10 assists to boost her total as Salisbury’s program leader.

Meikrantz plans to major in business marketing and minor in public relations or communications.