From battling opponents for 80 minutes to facing personal challenges, the journey of a high school soccer goalie shows a story of resilience, determination, and the drive to improve both on and off the field. Being a soccer goalie puts a toll on somebody both physically and mentally. One missed save can alter the whole game, and it can alter the goalie’s mindset and mental for the rest of the game. A goalie needs to stay laser-focused on the game and calculate every little movement that they have to make. In a sport where every save can decide whether the game is a win or a loss, the goalie must stand strong as the last line of defense for the team.
The goalie for the Pennridge High School men’s soccer team, Gavin Dimmick, has faced many challenges throughout his career but they all shaped him to have a great high school career. Dimmick just recently played his last game in a Pennridge jersey. Growing up, Dimmick’s brother was always a very good soccer goalie. Ever since a young age, Dimmick strived to try and fill the shoes of his brother who was a 4-year starter as the goalie on varsity. From being a freshman on the freshman team, Dimmick quickly gained the determination and motivation to become a varsity starter. In Dimmick’s sophomore season, he made the junior varsity team which helped him earn recognition from the varsity coach. Dimmick also started his varsity time in his sophomore year when he swung up for some games. This made the coach quickly realize the talent and potential Dimmick had. Because of this, Dimmick was a varsity starter in both his junior and senior seasons. With his fast reflexes and determination, Dimmick quickly earned the respect and trust of his teammates. Dimmick’s journey from wanting to be a varsity player to becoming a standout star on the varsity team is a testament to his hard work, passion for the game, and determination throughout his high school career.
Dimmick has played soccer ever since he was young when his parents signed him up. Dimmick claims that without soccer, he doesn’t know what he would have been doing right now. Soccer has been an outlet from the real world and all of his problems ever since he started. Watching his brother play growing up has grown his love for the sport and he grew motivated to be as good, if not, better than his brother. All throughout middle school, Dimmick watched his brother start on varsity as an underclassman. Dimmick worked very hard through middle school and his freshman and sophomore seasons to try to make the varsity team. From going to the Pennridge High School turf and practicing with his brother, to taking private lessons with a personal goalie trainer, Dimmick did all he could to better his skill to make varsity. When Dimmick finally got the opportunity to play on varsity in his sophomore year, all of his hard work paid off and he took advantage of it. Ever since he first swung up to varsity, Dimmick has been the starting goalie on varsity. When asked about his high school career, Dimmick stated, “I am blessed to have been able to have the opportunity to experience real high school soccer”. Dimmick has experienced many memorable moments during his high school career, one being when they made it to the state semi finals in his sophomore year, but the most memorable moment was “making all of the friends that I did through soccer.”
Aaron Rapsinski, the varsity soccer coach, believes that “Gavin played a huge role on this team this season”. Although this season wasn’t a big success on the scoresheet, Rapsinski believes that Gavin grew massively as a player, but also a human. Rapsinski stated, “Dimmick kept us in a lot of games”. Not only was Dimmick a key player on the field, but he was also a key player off the field. Rapsinski said, “Gavin was a guy that would bring laughs and a lighter angle to things at practice”. Rapsinski claims that Dimmick acted as a leader this year and pushed his teammates to the best of their abilities.
Andrew Levush., a midfielder on the varsity soccer team, also believes that Dimmick was a key player on and off the field. Levush stated that Dimmick “saved us many games”. Levush also said, “Gavin pushes younger players to the best of their abilities and makes the team feel more like a family”. According to Levush, Dimmick provides good team chemistry and tries to better everybody around both on and off the field.
Dimmick has been a key player on all of the teams he has been on throughout his high school career, but he has also been a great teammate. Dimmick reached out to try to better his teammates and also make the team feel more comfortable. Ever since a young age, Dimmick has strived to try and be a varsity starter, and, in Dimmick’s words, “I accomplished my goals in high school”.
