One day, a nine-year-old girl steps onto a skateboard and unsurprisingly, falls off. One year later, she steps onto a skateboard and does not fall, but glides. Four years later, that same girl, freshman Noelle Murphy, steps onto a skateboard and glides her way to victory.
Growing up, Murphy noticed that there was always a skateboard in her garage. At nine years old, she was determined to learn how to skate properly.
“I asked my dad to take me to the skate park, and he did,” Murphy said. “And then I fell really, really, hard again and I was like, ‘Oh my gosh, I love this’ because I didn’t want to stop doing it even after I fell. So it really just opened my eyes to that new world.”
Murphy practices by going to skate parks like Stars & Stripes Park or Mat Hoffman Action Sports Park, struggling more on some days compared to others. She stays in shape through her various other activities, which include dance and pom.
“[It] really helps my leg muscles, but usually I’ll just go to the skate park and run all of my tricks, and then sometimes I’ll have bad days where I can’t do it all, and it gets really frustrating,” Murphy said.
For Murphy, the best part of the sport is the freedom of creativity and the absence of judgement.
“I feel like everyone is kind of a union,” Murphy said.
Through skateboarding, Murphy said she has learned discipline, something that she lacked growing up.
“Skateboarding really taught me how to fall, get back up, clean myself off and try again,” Murphy said.
As for her proudest achievement, Murphy recalls her first-place victory at the 2025 Texas Amateur Skateboarding League Competition.
“That was my first competition to go solo, and I ended up winning first in my division,” Murphy said. “And I got my first plaque [that was] not with a team.”
Although the sport is always developing and increasing in difficulty, Murphy’s goal remains the same: to stay happy and keep skating.
“I do know that I really love the sport, and that if I find a way, I will pursue it in the future,” Murphy said.
