Girls soccer: DuPage County captain Burke sets Naperville Central scoring record, leads Redhawks to second in state
Emerson Burke was all-everything this spring for Naperville Central.
Smashing the goals scored (40) as well as points (97) accumulated in a season at her school, Burke helped lead the Redhawks to their first state appearance since the mid 1990s when they brought home the Class 3A second-place trophy from nearby North Central College.
Burke, who will take her talents to Ann Arbor, Michigan, has been named the captain of the 2026 Daily Herald DuPage County All-Area girls soccer team. Since she will graduate early next year, the junior’s high school playing career ended after the 2-1 loss to New Trier in the state title game.
“She was someone who transcended anything we had before and not many times does a player break records by as much as she did with goals and points,” Redhawks coach Troy Adams said.
“And the other piece in it that people miss is she was pretty close with 53 goals and 42 assists (in her high school career) so pretty balanced. Sometimes people get caught up in all the goals but she’s a great playmaker and sets up her teammates.”
It didn’t take long for Burke to get rolling in her new role this season, scoring twice and adding an assist in the Redhawks’ season-opening 7-0 victory over Burlington Central at Memorial Stadium.
"It’s awesome to see a kid keep growing every year that they’re in the program and Emerson has gotten better every single year,” Adams said. “She’s put in a lot of time and a lot of dedication. I’ll be driving by Knoch Park and I’ve seen her out there before school and on Saturdays and Sundays just working on becoming a better player.”
The previous season Burke shined on the back line while Callie Tumilty, the captain of the 2025 Daily Herald DuPage All-Area team, led the attack. Burke scored seven goals and led the Redhawks with 14 assists as a sophomore despite playing in a much different role.
As Burke continued to contribute in big ways the Redhawks kept on winning.
“I think I learned a lot playing outside back last year and I play where the coach tells me,” Burke said. “He believes in my abilities and I think that’s super important, him trusting me to play forward, to play in back. And my teammates trust me. I I feel like I can adapt to the role and I do play forward for club so it’s fun, a lot of fun.”
The University of Michigan recruit was named the Most Valuable Player of the Ed Watson Naperville Invitational via the Golden Ball Award. She also received the Golden Boot Award during the tournament.
In helping lead the Redhawks to an undefeated DuPage Valley Conference title, Burke was recognized with the conference’s Golden Boot Award.
She’s tied for second all-time at Naperville Central in goals soccer, is third in points and fifth in assists.
“I loved playing with Emerson this year,” Naperville Central senior forward Malia Shen said. “She is an amazing player on and off the field.”
She got there after her record-breaking spring. In addition to her scoring the most goals and points during a single season in a Redhawks uniform, she had 17 assists, seventh most in a season at Naperville Central.
"What makes Emerson great is her understanding of the game,” Shen said. “Her soccer IQ is incredible and she sees the game very well. She is a super dangerous player on the ball. I’ve played on a club team with her since fourth grade and she has always been an amazing teammate.”
Burke held her fellow Redhawks to a higher standard.
“She holds herself to such a high standard and I think her teammates picked up on that,” Adams said. “Being good was not good enough. You want to be close to the best you can and collectively as a team we bought in and it helped the team get better.”