Allison (Graham) Ripley is an inductee in the second class of the Starr’s Mill Hall of Fame.
Ripley spent the majority of her time at Starr’s Mill playing for the varsity girls soccer team. She also participated in basketball and softball, as well as a club soccer team outside of school. Ripley graduated with the class of 2002.
Ripley was on the first team to win a championship for girls soccer. Her position was attacking midfield. She continued to win awards in and out of high school, including Georgia Gatorade Player of 2002 and NSCAA High School All-American in both 2001 and 2002. Ripley was a member of the United States U19 and U21 National Team.
“We didn’t have a senior class when Starr’s Mill first opened,” Ripley said. “So we got to be a pretty close-knit group because nobody [from the original team] graduated and we won state without any seniors.”
Ripley’s hard work and resilience set high standards for the soccer program. The team won their first state championship with no senior class, her class being the first to attend all four years of high school at Starr’s Mill. They continued to win four other state championships. Ripley was involved in three of those five.
“It’s an honor to be a part of this group,” Ripley said. “I’m excited to see the changes [of the school] and see some old familiar faces.”
During her entire high school career, she contributed 93 points, 40 goals, and 13 assists.
“Put your education first, try to find ways to get involved in the community,” Ripley said. “ Have fun no matter what you’re doing.”
Ripley attended Clemson University and earned a degree in parks recreation and tourism management. After college, she coached soccer collegiately at U.N.C. Charlotte and U.N.B. Birmingham. She then went on to work in the corporate world for a multitude of years and recently retired.
Ripley currently resides in Charlotte, North Carolina, with her husband and two daughters. She continues to maintain close friendships with some of her teammates from her years at Starr’s Mill.
“It was an awesome and rare opportunity to be able to play two, three, and four years with those girls,” Ripley said. “It’s like long life friendships that you created back in 1998 and continue today to be close friends with a lot of them.”