Megan Webster gives her all for her teammates, even if it means aggressively putting the stop on offensive soccer players trying to score on her team.

That's why she is taking her game to the next level, having just signed a scholarship to play at Tennessee Temple University.

"I believe if I'm not giving my all, I'm letting my teammates down," Webster said.

The three-year starter (offensively and defensively) is not the kind of player to let her teammates down, either, Dave Sexauer, her high school soccer coach, said.

"She really anchored our defense," Sexauer said, noting she played center fullback aggressively for the Lady Tigers.

He said Tennessee Temple, located in downtown Chattanooga, is getting someone whose game should improve dramatically.

"She's very versatile, very coachable," Sexauer said. "She's the perfect player to go to the next level. She'll work hard to pick up the finer points of the game."

He added that Webster, a member of the Daily Tribune News' all-county soccer team, leaves her best on the field: "She brings 100 percent effort to every game."

He said Webster stays in shape, playing softball in the offseason for Adairsville.

Kenrick Liburd, head coach for Tennessee Temple, said he also believes Webster will dramatically improve during her collegiate career.

"I believe she's just scratched the surface of how good she will get," Liburd added.

He said Webster tried out with Tennessee Temple -- a member of the National Christian College Athletic Association that plays an NAIA schedule against such teams at Atlanta Christian, Reinhardt and LaGrange -- and her performance convinced him she will fit in with the team.

"She's a natural leader and makes those around her better," he said. "We believe she is the kind of person we want to build our program around."

He said Webster will play defense but he hasn't decided her position. "We're looking at her for two defensive positions," he said.

He said while Webster did well at the tryouts, she had caught the attention of an assistant coach at the college when he was referee at her games the past couple of years.

Webster said Emmanuel Awotula, the coach/referee, had praised her for being aggressive in her play but also for "playing with class."

She said she looked at a number of other schools but feels she shares some of the values that Tennessee Temple exhibits.

"I love helping people," she said, "and Tennessee Temple has an outreach program into the community."

She said the college has similarities to Adairsville.

"Everyone is close knit here -- if you need someone at Adairsville you can pick up your phone and call anyone at the school," she said. "That's what I love about Adairsville and that's what I see at Tennessee Temple."

She said she is pleased to take her game to the college level.

Webster was injured in a wreck as a ninth-grader and said it took a year for her back, broken in two places, to heal.

She said while recuperating she would think of returning to the soccer field.

"I've played since I was 4 or 5," she said. "I've always loved it."

She added that she played softball the same number of years but feels soccer is a better fit for her.

"With soccer you react to what happens," she said. "I'm better if I react."