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Everyone
laughs at that
story, but it’s true. It’s worked out,
and I’m glad that I picked here.”
Not long after Tiernan’s decision, her house became divided, as her
brother Eddie—a year older—elected to go to the University of Virginia to participate
on the rowing team. That decision resulted in an influx of orange into the parents’ wardrobes,
making their attire suitable for both of their children’s athletics contests.
While Tiernan rarely shows any empathy toward anything UVA, she also doesn’t get
caught up in the rivalry.
“He tends to care about it more than I do,” she said. “I decided that I was going to Tech
before he decided to go to UVA. I didn’t create this rivalry. He did.
“He loves his school, but he would wear his Tech shirt whenever we played them. I’d
always want to get a picture afterward with him wearing his ‘VT’ things because I knew he
didn’t like it, but he still supported me and my team.”
Her brother now goes to graduate school at the University of Texas, where he continues
pursuit of a master’s degree in civil engineering. Murielle is just as smart, having made the
All-ACC Academic Team each of the past three years. She graduates next May with a degree
in residential environments and design.
Few know of this particular major, but it fits well with her interest in houses—something
that started when she and her parents went searching for houses in the Northern Virginia
area.
“Of course, we never moved once, but we looked all the time,” she laughed. “Once, my
dad was like, ‘We’re going to put an extension on the house. How do you want your room to
look?’ So I’d sit there with him and sketch out floor plans.”
Then she paused.
“Of course, we didn’t do that either,” she joked again. “Then they moved two
years ago after I was here at Tech.
“But that [diagramming floor plans] was always interesting to me, and I’d
love walking through model homes. I thought it was so cool. I loved looking
at the floor plans that the builders would give you. I took a couple of
classes my sophomore year, and I liked it. I think it’s been a good fit.”
She doesn’t have future employment lined up, which fits into her
mindset of waiting until the necessary time. At the present, she
keeps her focus on her team.
As Tiernan and the Hokies enter the stretch run of the season,
they hope to play with a little more consistency. Graduation
took its toll last season, as longtime standouts Ashley Meier
An All-American and a three-time
All-ACC choice, Murielle Tiernan
has refused to let cystic fibrosis stop
her from becoming the most prolific
scorer in Virginia Tech history
By
Jimmy Robertson
Continued on
page 34
inside.hokiesports.com33
women’s soccer spotlight
murielle tiernan