The following feature is sponsored by Striker Soccer Supplies, 161 W. State Street, Doylestown, PA.
By Jarrad Saffren
Central Bucks West boys soccer coach Stefan Szygiel called him “the best freshman and the best goalkeeper I’ve ever worked with.”
CB West captain and center back Brady Boylan said, “He’s the best keeper I’ve ever played with in 12 years of soccer. Whether it’s high school or club or anything.”
The freshman sensation is Bucks goalkeeper Dylan Smith. And his story is a valuable lesson to young soccer players about earning your spot and making it your own.
In 2014, CB West had the best goalkeeper in the Suburban One League Continental Conference. Senior Daniel Merritt, a Ukrainian refugee, was named to the Continental Conference First Team.
Merritt’s graduation left a gaping hole between the posts that five Bucks tried to fill during training camp.
“The best one wins the job,” said Szygiel at the time. “I don’t think about it as, ‘This kid’s a freshman, sophomore, junior, senior.’ It’s just about who’s the best guy.”
Szygiel identified the “best guy” pretty quickly.
“At the current moment, our best is a freshman. Our keeper is a freshman,” said Szygiel before the first game, perhaps repeating himself because he barely believed what he was saying. “I knew who he was coming up. He was a high level club player and his dad and uncle played college soccer and went to West.”
Szygiel also knew that Smith was not just the best goalie on West, but potentially one of the best in the SOL.
“He’s already a leader and has the potential to possibly be a stud,” said Szygiel in August.
On Sept. 4, West opened its season at Upper Dublin. Before the game, Smith and his two closest competitors were taking turns warming up.
“I didn’t know I was the starter yet,” Smith said.
Then Szygiel pulled him aside and told him he won the job.
“I was excited,” said Smith. “I knew I did everything I had to during training camp but I still wasn’t sure.”
Smith went out and made his coach look smart, stopping six shots in a 2-0 win over a powerful Upper Dublin team that went on to win the SOL American. It was only the beginning.
In the SOL Continental opener against Quakertown, Smith stoned three shots and earned his second shutout. He posted shutouts in four of West’s first five games, all wins.
West went 6-6 after its hot start, but Smith continued to impress. He has 10 shutouts and almost singlehandedly ended CB East’s quest for an undefeated, untied season.
On Monday, Smith made 10 saves before the Patriots finally scored in overtime.
“He was next level against East,” said Szygiel. “He made at least four or five saves that without him we lose 5-0 and it doesn’t go to OT and we don’t even have a shot.”
Szygiel named Smith a captain after the loss, the first time he has named a freshman captain in seven years of coaching. The coach said the decision was overdue.
“He’s the loudest kid on the field,” said Szygiel. “There were one or two games where we struggled to get going, and it wasn’t a senior who stepped up and rallied the team. It was our freshman goalkeeper.”
Boylan agrees with Szygiel. Smith’s communication skills are precocious.
“Most freshmen are afraid to speak up,” Boylan said.
They also set Smith apart from Merritt.
“Daniel was great, but since he couldn’t speak English, I had to be the main communicator as the center back,” said Boylan.
CB West is an experienced team. Seven seniors start, and four are captains who made varsity as sophomores. But the veterans listen to Smith because he sees the whole field.
“He reads the game like a field player. It’s like having a central midfielder in goal. He communicates with midfielders, forwards, not just defenders,” said Szygiel. “He’s a soccer player. He wants to impact the game as much as he can besides just stopping shots.”
Smith is not just vocal, he’s also a physical specimen.
“He’s the best diver I’ve ever seen,” said Boylan. “He’s made a great save or two in at least four or five games that otherwise we would have lost.”
So how can the kid possibly improve? Smith said he can work harder in practice.
Boylan said Smith is the second best goalie in the Continental, behind CB East’s Austin Prime. Szygiel said Smith needs to let go of the things he can’t control, like the referees and the weather.
But all three believe that Smith will be the best goalie in the league by his sophomore season, and a Division I prospect by his senior campaign.
“He’ll definitely get there,” said Boylan.
“I think I will too,” said Smith.
- Log in to post comments
