Throughout DePaul women’s soccer program history, there have not been many players as successful in furthering their careers after collegiate ball as alumni Morgan Turner. 

The once All-Big East First Team member and fourth all-time goal scorer in DePaul school history has inked not one, but two professional soccer deals since graduating DePaul in June. 

Turner, the 5-foot-8 forward from Maple Grove, Minn., will play back home for the Minnesota Aurora FC, a pre-professional women’s soccer league, whose season starts this May. 

Abroad, she was able to ink a European contract for SCU Torreense of Liga BPI run by the Portuguese Football Federation. Turner made this signing official on Aug. 7 and recorded her first goal as a member in her debut on Aug. 29. 

Turner spent five seasons at DePaul, entering as a freshman in 2017 where she made the Big East All-Freshman Team. The potential was always there for Turner; it was evident from her coaches she would be a special player. 

“Her freshman [year] from a soccer perspective, technically she was a bit raw, but I knew fine-tuning it would be easy,” head coach Michelle O’Brien said. “The hardest thing when we recruit is evaluating the mental side of the game, and it was evident from the first day that Morgan had that.” 

Turner’s progress only grew from 2017. In the following years she received Big East All-Academic teams and a CoSIDA Academic Team award as well. She started in all but two matches that season. 

She led the team in minutes played every season since 2018 and logged 4,812 minutes of soccer played on the pitch from 2018-2021. The Blue Demons were nearly perfect in games where Turner scored. DePaul had a crazy 17-1-1 record. Turner had a career-best 14 game-winning goals, which is the most in DePaul team history. 

DePaul women’s soccer program has had only a handful of players turn to play professional soccer. With Turner’s recent success, she showed to her DePaul teammates that furthering their playing careers is a possibility. 

“Since my freshman year, when she was a sophomore, I knew that she had a lot of talent and passion and that’s what carries into the professional game,” senior Kristin Boos said. 

Turner was more than just a leader on the field. She took time to build relationships with her teammates off the field, which has kept a stronger friendship today. 

As Turner’s career ended with the Blue Demons, there was time she thought her soccer career was over. Those around never wanted to see her step away from the game, and that summer, she got back to work. 

Graduate student and defender Sydney Parker explains how nobody really worked harder than Turner, and it makes sense for how successful she has become in the sport.

“Morgan was an awesome player to play with,” Parker said. “She was just an even better person honestly. She was always kind, super welcoming. She was someone on the field that busted her butt, never complained and always put her head down.” 

Turner’s legacy will forever be embedded in DePaul women’s soccer, and she has many peers and former teammates that were able to witness it. It is more than just her play that will solidify her career.

“So many of our players look up to Morgan,” assistant coach Rachel Pittman said. “She was and is such a role model for them. They see the performances that she produced for our program and the legacy that she left and it inspires them to do the same thing. So many of our current players see what Morgan does, and continue to do at the next level and want to emulate that in their game.” 

Connect with Preston Zbrosczcyk: @PrestonZbroszc1 | [email protected]