Julia Caseres, New Jersey’s all-time leading scorer in collegiate soccer and a police officer, died Friday night after a year-long battle against a rare form of lung cancer.

She was 28.

Caseres, a native of Union and resident of Clinton, scored 100 goals during her collegiate soccer career at Rutgers-Newark and New Jersey City University, and broke the men’s and women’s scoring record held by former U.S. Women’s Soccer team captain Christie Rampone in 2011.

A criminal justice major, Caseres went on to become a police officer, serving in Piscataway for the last three years.

But the impact she had off the field and out of uniform was what came to mind first for those that knew her.

"The impact she made was not only on my life, it was on my daughters lives as well,” said Robert Bielan, her head coach at NJCU. “She instilled a hard work ethic in my kids that when they step on the field, they leave it all on the field. After [NJCU’s] games, my daughters would run onto the field to me and quickly were grabbed and hugged and kissed by Julia—that’s who she was.”

In a tribute post on Facebook, the Piscataway Police Department described her as having a “beautiful smile” and a “bubbly personality.”

“In the few short years Julia was with us she impacted so many,” the post read.

Caseres was diagnosed with stage-four lung cancer in April of 2018. After going on medical leave, dozens of her fellow officers drove across the state in December to sing her Christmas carols.

Longtime friend and fellow NJCU alumnus Katie Feehan said Caseres was tireless and inspirational as a teammate.

“It was inspiring to watch her play and play with her not just because of talent, but because she was willing to fight through anything to help the team. Because she never gave up, neither did anyone else, and that is why we were so successful," she said. "I am going to miss her flying through the air through a group of defenders to get a touch on the ball and score, but I am going to miss her more off the field being one of the best friends I could ever ask for. If you knew Julia, you loved her, and I always will.”

Family and friends are invited to attend a visitation for Caseres on Tuesday, June 25 from 5 to 9 p.m. at the Galante Funeral Home, 2800 Morris Ave., in Union. Funeral services will on Wednesday June 26, 2019 at 8:30 a.m. at the funeral home, followed by a funeral Mass at Holy Spirit Church, 971 Suburban Road in Union at 10:30 a.m.

Stephen Stirling may be reached at sstirling@njadvancemedia.com. Follow him on Twitter @sstirling. Find him on Facebook.

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