DANBURY, CONN. — Louisiana native Carrigan Chauvin knew she was a long way from home when she and her mother arrived at Western Connecticut State University last January in the heart of an especially cold and snowbound New England winter — yet the warm reception they received and the athletic and academic opportunities she discovered at Western convinced her that she had come to the right place.

The South Terrebonne High School soccer standout, whose roots in her hometown of Chauvin reflect her family’s long history in the parishes of the southern Louisiana bayou country, traveled more than 1,300 miles with her mother Melissa in January to meet with WCSU Women’s Soccer Coach Joe Mingachos and members of the Colonials team who shared the regular season Little East Conference title last year. She brought only a light jacket — all she ever needed for January weather back home — but after experiencing “the coldest weather of my life, let’s just say I left Connecticut with a new winter coat,” she said.

It was more than the opportunity to play soccer at the college level that brought Chauvin to Connecticut: She was also eager to check out Western’s meteorology degree program, in anticipation that she will pursue a career as a meteorologist in the broadcasting field.

“I have always been interested in the earth and weather, but it was not until recently that I knew this is exactly what I want to do for a career,” Chauvin said. “It took lots of searching to find a school that matched my needs to earn my desired degree in meteorology, and to join a successful women’s soccer team.

“When I found out about WCSU, I emailed Coach Mingachos and came to visit the campus,” she recalled. “I fell in love with the entire atmosphere of Western Connecticut, and the coaches and the team made me feel so welcome. That sealed the deal on making my decision to attend Western.”

In May, she made her decision official when she signed a national letter of intent to join the WCSU women’s soccer program. She will begin studies this fall to seek a Bachelor of Science in Meteorology with concentration in television and radio weathercasting.

Mingachos observed that he and his assistant coaches sensed immediately that Chauvin would make a great fit for the WCSU soccer program when they met her in January, and that impression was reinforced by the strongly positive response to the Louisiana visitor from the veteran soccer team members who hosted her at their dorm for an overnight stay. Still, he noted that the WCSU women’s soccer program has never before attracted a recruit from Louisiana, and he initially had his doubts whether Chauvin was ready to make the transition to the dramatically different climate and culture of New England.

“Did I ever think this was going to become a reality? No!” Mingachos conceded. “But her mom told me that, when Carrigan sets her mind to something, consider it done.”

For a family that “for as long as anyone can remember” has been born and raised in the Louisiana town that bears her surname, Chauvin admitted that it will be a big step to attend college so far from her home “along the bayous where everyone knows each other and where we really do have gators in our backyards.” Docked behind her house is the 65-foot steel trawl boat that her father Carey built and named Lady Melissa, for her mother, to ply the coastal waters of the Gulf of Mexico and work for the past 36 years as a fourth-generation shrimper.

“His boat has served as a place of refuge for every hurricane that has crossed our path — even Katrina, when we waited out the storm in the cabin of the boat and occasionally on the back deck with a video camera,” she recalled. “I have no doubt that going through those experiences sparked the drive that I have to pursue meteorology as a career.”

Her family has also weathered adversity, especially in the aftermath of the 2010 British Petroleum oil spill in the Gulf that put her father and other shrimpers out of work for many months. “My dad, other boat owners and volunteers were out there in the Gulf as soon as they could to clean up the pollution and restore our home,” she said. “We are so blessed that today my dad and all the other families along the bayou are back to their jobs, doing what they love.”

Chauvin, who has played soccer since the age of 10, received numerous honors for her achievements during four years playing center midfield and forward for the South Terrebonne High School Lady Gators. During her sophomore, junior and senior years, she earned recognition as a first-team women’s soccer selection in her school’s conference. She also earned honors at South Terrebonne High in her senior year as the most valuable offensive soccer player and as recipient of the Paul C. Roche Award, given to the best overall female athlete at the school.

“Soccer helped me become more outgoing, confident and strong,” Chauvin said. “I am aware that the Western team recently has been very successful, and I hope to contribute to their achievements. I am a hardworking and dedicated player who can create opportunities on the field.”

Quoted in the Daily Comet of Lafourche Parish, Louisiana, Chauvin’s coach at South Terrebonne, Archie Adams, observed, “She will bring a tremendous work ethic to the Western program. She is a self-motivator and she leads by example, and that was really big. You never had to worry about her because she always got the job done.”

Chauvin and other members of the Colonials women’s soccer team will arrive for the start of pre-season practices on August 18. Mingachos noted that she will be one of 12 freshmen and transfer students who will join a team returning most of the players who played central roles in the program’s success last season. He observed that she and other new members of the team all will be given the same opportunity to demonstrate what they can contribute on the field, “and she will determine by her own play where she ends up fitting in.”

“In terms of her personality, she should have no problems at all finding the proper chemistry with the rest of the team,” Mingachos said. “That’s just as important to us as how she plays on the field. She also appears to be a very hard-working individual, and that will put her in a good place here. We are very much looking forward to getting Carrigan here on our team.”

When she arrives for classes in August, Chauvin will be better prepared this time to dress for New England weather. “It’s going to take some major adjusting from the hot and unpredictable weather I have known all my life at home, where we say the real ‘four seasons’ we have down here are oyster, crawfish, crab and shrimp,” she said. “I have never been a fan of the cold weather, but all I can say is that I’m going to have to get used to it.

“I cannot express enough how excited I am to have the chance to experience all four seasons in Connecticut,” she added. “I am eager to be a student at WCSU this fall, and to bring a little Southern culture with me.”

Western Connecticut State University offers outstanding faculty in a range of quality academic programs. Our diverse university community provides students an enriching and supportive environment that takes advantage of the unique cultural offerings of Western Connecticut and New York. Our vision: To be an affordable public university with the characteristics of New England’s best small private universities.