Setbacks are inevitable for all of us.

Whether it’s academic, work or personal, life’s toughest situations rarely come in convenient moments.

This was especially the case for Colorado State soccer player Addison Huber during her recruitment out of high school.

Huber, a sophomore originally hailing from Flower Mound High School in Texas, was a three-star recruit with many honors — including a Texas ECNL all-regional selection in 2023. However, after tearing her ACL during her junior year, a lot of the buzz and excitement surrounding Huber had started to fade away. 

“It really went silent from there from a lot of the coaches I was talking to,” Huber said. “And it was more sad and very disappointing that I was getting recruited by a lot of schools that I was really happy about, but they all went silent once they found out.”

However, head coach for CSU soccer Keeley Hagen still had her eyes set on Huber, despite the injuries the goalkeeper was facing.

“Addie’s an energy giver, which, for me, that’s just those people are so easy to be around,” Hagen said. “She just brings such positivity to the team. So right out of the gates for me, talking with her and her family was so easy.”

Huber said her first meeting with Hagen was a positive interaction, and the relationship built from there.

“During the summer, I wasn’t even cleared to play yet, (but) my club coach had a connection to Keeley,” Huber said. “(Hagen) was one of the few coaches that fully stuck with me and believed in me.”

In her first season playing as keeper for the Rams after redshirting her freshman year, Huber totaled 87 saves through 17 starts in 18 games and faced a total of 244 shots on goal.

Huber said her success is due to the network of people supporting her.

“Coming into this year, my confidence has grown a lot and being that commander of the back line, just being an anchor, and then learning the game too,” Huber said. “I’m really grateful to have my seniors and just people that have more experience in front of me that can help lead me.”

One such senior for Huber is CSU midfielder Avery Boulom.

“My journey kind of follows the same as Addie with redshirting my freshman year,” Boulom said. “I was able to help, just like, give her pointers. … It’s OK to make mistakes, and it’s, ‘What can you do next? What’s the next play?'”

Boulom, a Mansfield, Texas, native, has been a defensive contributor in her senior year at Colorado State.

However, in a less-than-ideal 4-11-3 season for the Rams, Huber said she maintains a positive attitude with a fresh slate this season.

“It’s been a really exciting season overall,” Huber said. “Figuring out this new conference and all the fun, exciting things that come with that. I’m just really proud of how the team stayed connected and positive throughout this whole season because every single day is just an opportunity to grow.”

On the field, the Rams are a team built on being a family and values of “togetherness,” Huber said. 

“There’s so many different personalities on the team, and somehow we all just get along and come together so well,” Huber said. “We all care so much about each other. … I think those are the top three things: family, anchor and relentlessness.”

Off the field, Huber said she has people who make her feel supported and give her time away from athletics. 

“My parents have come to almost every single game, and having them always there for me has been such a huge blessing,” Huber said. “I have a lot of friends that are in my classes that ask about the games or say they went to the game. I can be a student to them; I’m not just an athlete.”

Huber comes from a family of collegiate athletes, with her mom and dad playing college tennis and soccer respectively.

The sophomore said she still looks up to both of her parents as a source of inspiration for being an athlete and ties her love of the game back to them. 

“It’s just something really cool to see that I’m following in my dad’s footsteps and my parents’ footsteps,” Huber said. “I grew up in (Dallas-Fort Worth), where soccer in general is just so big. It’s one of the hot spots for women’s soccer, and I just grew even more competitive with that.”

Going into the 2027 season as a junior, the goalkeeper said she wants to continue to show no task is too tall for her.

“I want to have some swaggerness to me, and I want fans to see that,” Huber said. “I’m a calm, confident anchor for them. … I want them to look out for that next year because that’s something I really want to show.”

Boulom said Huber can simultaneously take on a lot while having some fun.

“I for sure see swagger in Addie,” Boulom said. “You know, whenever we’re celebrating our wins, the locker room is so hyped from her.”

Reach Landon Blanco at sports@collegian.com or on social media @RMCollegian.