SOMERS, N.Y. - When her family headed to Philadelphia for the World Cup match between Paraguay and France on July 3, Aurora Riley sensed a little jealousy from the rest of her family.
"Yeah, I think a little bit," she joked.
Even if it was just a matter of stadium logistics, who could blame her mother, father and brothers?
The Somers soccer player emerged from the tunnel at Lincoln Financial Field with 22 other flag bearers and proudly carried the Paraguayan flag.
"We held the flags at midfield, and all the players came out and walked alongside us," she beamed.
The opportunity came through her father, Daniel Riley. Working for Liberty Coca-Cola, the company helps manage FIFA Club World Cup operations at host stadiums in New York, New Jersey and Philadelphia. With the field needing to be filled with the participating nations' flags during player introductions, a nationwide contest was held to select the flag bearers.
Knowing Aurora met the academic qualifications, Daniel submitted her application. Then came the waiting game.
Meanwhile, father and daughter had already talked about attending the match, and Daniel had even been looking into tickets. So when he pulled off a little misdirection, Aurora had no reason to suspect anything.
"We're not going to that game anymore," he told me, "and I was really upset. And then he's like, 'But you're going to be a flag bearer on the 4th of July.' I didn't know what to say. It was just crazy."
With billions of people expected to watch around the world, the opportunity was both thrilling and intimidating.
"It's a mix of excitement and nervousness because I didn't want to mess up," said the Tusker.
Tasked with carrying the Paraguayan flag, she admitted she quietly had another favorite.
"Between you and me, I want France," she joked.
Upon arriving in Philadelphia, Riley reported to the stadium six hours before kickoff. The flag bearers gathered in a youth room beneath the stadium, where they watched the earlier match on a big screen and got to meet one another.
"I got to meet a bunch of really cool people," Riley said.
Later, it was time to get to work. Around 1 p.m., the group returned to the field for two rehearsals before breaking for lunch.
Soon afterward, they assembled in the tunnel.
"The players were behind us, we waved to them, and they waved back," she said.
The coaches also made a point to greet the youngsters.
"They all came by and gave each flag bearer fist bumps," Riley said.
Those brushes with soccer's elite weren't the only memorable part of the experience.
"The noise in the stadium was insane," she said.
Still, the anticipation proved to be the biggest challenge.
"We were standing in the tunnel for 15 minutes, and the nerves just got worse," she said.
When the moment finally arrived, Riley focused on one thing.
"Once I was on the field, I was trying not to look at the crowd because I was so scared," she said. "I was just focusing on not dropping the flag."
The payoff, however, made every nervous moment worthwhile.
"We got to see all the players up close," Riley said. "The Paraguayan players were walking right through our flags."
After the national anthems, Riley headed to her seat to enjoy the match, where the atmosphere only became more electric.
"It was crazy. They had their flags, and there were a bunch of people banging drums the whole game," said the Somers senior.
France's 1-0 victory on a penalty kick provided a fitting ending to an unforgettable day, but Riley believes the experience will have an even greater impact this fall.
"I feel like being able to experience the World Cup like this in person will get me super excited about senior season and help me bring that energy to the high school," she concluded.
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