HOPKINTON – Being selected as a United Soccer Coaches Scholar All-American is a very prestigious feat. This past year, only 107 athletes nationwide were chosen for such an honor.
As for Hopkinton’s girls soccer program? The Hillers saw two of their standouts added to the list, as Maddie Recupero and Nina Tzouganatos capped their impeccable high school careers with one more accolade.
“This is going to sound a little emotional, I guess is probably the right word,” said Hopkinton girls soccer coach Tom Skiba. “The key thing about them is that they both just care. They care about their own performances, they care about each other’s performances, and they really cared about their teammates. That’s kind of the big thing that set them apart. … That’s really what helped to motivate them (I believe), and to be able to perform at a high level for such a long time. To continually rise to the various challenges we faced throughout the years.”
A Princeton commit, Recupero was recently chosen as the Massachusetts Girls Soccer Gatorade Player of the Year following a season in which she set a Hillers program record for single-season goals (28) while dishing out 15 assists. She capped a high school tenure with 80 varsity games played, only missing one with an injury. The two-time Tri-Valley League MVP closed her academic career with an outstanding 4.6 weighted GPA.
Yet, she was still surprised to receive one of the country’s top athletic honors.
“It’s super rewarding,” said Recupero. “The fact that I wasn’t named a (USCHA) All-American honor, and the fact that I could get Gatorade Player of the Year? It was just really exciting, and rewarding for me.”
Meanwhile, Recupero’s closest ally has always been Tzouganatos. The team captains have worked in tandem on the field since middle school, even playing club soccer together with the FC Stars. A Boston University commit, Tzouganatos finished the 2024 season with 15 assists herself, tying Recupero for Hopkinton’s single-season record in helpers. She added eight goals, closing as the school’s all-time leader in varsity girls soccer games played. The recent graduate was a Tri-Valley League All-Star for a third time.
“We can be happy for each other, both getting this award,” Recupero said. “It means a lot to me, and it means a lot to the both of us. The fact that we can share this award, and the fact that so few people in the country got this – we were two of them. I feel super honored, and excited to receive this award. I think it means a lot, because it recognizes your academics, as well as soccer.”
Tzouganatos was in the process of moving to Commonwealth Ave. just recently, and took a moment to look back at her time in Hopkinton.
“It was such a blessing,” said Tzouganatos. “I was honestly really shocked, but it does show you that with a lot of hard work, a lot of good things can come from it. To share it with Maddie? She’s my best friend. She’s helped me so much with school, soccer and just life in general. It’s just special that we were able to share it together.”
Four other Massachusetts girls soccer stars were chosen as Scholar All-Americans, including Ella Askren of Clinton and Grayson Edwards of Nashoba, as well as Dexter-Southfield standouts Maddy Nylen and Meredith Theis.
Two boys were tabbed from the Bay State for the honor, as Masconomet’s Jack Fiedler and Ludlow’s Thomas Wadas earned recognition.
“It’s fantastic,” Skiba said. “The Scholar All-American is probably one of the best awards out there, because it’s a balance of classroom, soccer and community. It takes all three of those angles into effect, and you have to be performing at a high level in all three of those. It’s, in my opinion, one of the greatest awards out there and a huge recognition for what they accomplished. Not only as soccer players, but as members of the Hopkinton High School community.”
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