SuburbanOneSports.com recognizes a male and female featured athlete each week. The awards, sponsored by Univest, are given to seniors of good character who are students in good standing that have made significant contributions to their teams. Selections are based on nominations received from coaches, athletic directors and administrators.
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Female Athlete for week of Nov. 2, 2021.
For Rohan McInneshin, moving from her native Minneapolis and ending up in Cheltenham - with a pit stop in Missouri in between - was the form of destiny shaping her belief that everything happens for a reason. The soccer goalkeeper, who just completed her senior season with the Panthers, would not have wanted it any other way. “Definitely,” said the daughter of a St. Joseph’s University professor. “I’m very happy where I am, with all my friends and the community here.” McInneshin began playing soccer, her only organized sport, by the age of seven. “They kind of just put me in goal, the first travel game I ever played, and I’m still in goal now,” she recalled. “I like it. I being able to see the field and being able to analyze what’s going on and, hopefully, making saves.”
By middle school, McInneshin first crossed paths with Leah Matusow, who would coach her there and then again in high school. “To see her from eighth grade to being a senior in high school, she has shown so much growth in so many ways,” Matusow said. “I don’t just mean as an athlete, but as a person. Her confidence has grown.” The last two years, McInneshin has split time in goal with Amaya Washington. The duo formed a unique bond, pushing each other to get better while Matusow rode the hot hand. “What was cool was watching the two of them push each other,” said Matusow. “It was almost like you had two goalies out there – one on the bench and one on the field. Their relationship was really cool to watch.” Added McInneshin: “Yes, Amaya is great. She has definitely made me a better keeper, on and off the field. We always have fun in goal.”
Meanwhile, with Matusow having been a goalkeeper herself, the opportunity existed for special instruction. “She has been amazing,” said McInneshin of Matusow. “She used to be a goalie when she played, which was really great for me. She really understands specific techniques and how to see the game.” Although it was always easy to relate to McInneshin, this sealed the deal. “You always can relate to someone who played the same position,” she said. “We were able to bond over that, too.” From Matusow’s perspective, McInneshin has earned everything she got in terms of playing time. “Ro is not someone who had always had the starting job or has been the varsity goalie forever,” said Matusow. “That wasn’t her. But she continued to work and put in the time. She proved she deserved to get the minutes, especially this year. She would always come to me and say, ‘Hey coach, what should I work on? What can I do to get better?’ She always wanted to just improve.”
A member of the National Honor Society, she also takes part in the Science Fair and boasts an unweighted GPA of 4.0. She is considering a major in science or pre-med. Schools such as Pitt, Penn and Georgetown are on her list. Time permitting, she also volunteers her time at the Holy Redeemer Community Garden. “It’s an amazing community,” said McInneshin. “They really built up the area around it, with goats and chickens. They have a weekly farmer’s market. I go whenever I can, but more in the summer. I help with whatever they need help with, whether it’s harvesting stuff for the farmer’s market or taking care of plants or looking after the animals.” Matusow has observed McInneshin in a camp setting, working with younger girls. “Watching her, and watching other kids look up to her, she just cares a lot about other people and has a really big heart,” she said. “I’m the lucky one. I got to coach her in middle school. To come full circle back in high school is pretty cool. Everyone she meets would say similar things. We are going to miss her next year.”
To read McInneshin’s complete profile, please click on the following link: https://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/female/rohan-mcinneshin-0097698
Univest’s SuburbanOneSports.com Featured Male Athlete for week of Nov. 2, 2021.
Seunghyeon Kim surprised just about everyone when he announced he was going out for football his freshman year. It was an idea that first crossed his mind when the now Council Rock North senior and his brother - three years older and a member of the football team - were picking up their younger brother from summer camp. “It was right before I started high school, and he was like, ‘Do you want to play any fall sport?’” Kim recalled. “I was like – ‘Football kind of interests me because you play it, and it’s probably the only sport I understand besides track.’ I was like, ‘Why not?’ He said, ‘Okay, let me text my coach.’ My brother and I told our mom over lunch, and she was like, ‘No way, are you sure?’ because I’d never shown any interest in it. My parents were like – do what you want to do. They never forced us to do anything. We didn’t reluctantly have to do soccer. I know some kids did soccer just because their parents told them to, so we never had that, and I never showed interest in doing football or any sport, so it was just out of nowhere literally that I was on the football team.”
Kim in football pads - he’s still not an imposing figure at 5-8, 145 pounds – didn’t surprise only his mother. “I just remember going to preseason in August, and even all the kids were like, ‘No way you’re joining. Are you here because your older brother is taking care of you?’” Kim said. “I was like, ‘No, I’m playing.’” Kim just wrapped up his final high school football season. He’s never been a star. As a matter of fact, he didn’t see meaningful varsity minutes until this year, and even then, it was a position – lead blocker - that wasn’t exactly natural for Kim. He was, however, always a positive addition to the team. “He could have easily packed it in, especially after last year as a junior not getting a lot of playing time,” Rock North coach John Greiner said. “He’s motivation for all the players because of the fact that he’s undersized, but he has the biggest heart out there of anybody.”
While football occupies Kim’s fall, track and field fill his time in winter and spring. He is a jumper and sprinter, but pole vaulting is his specialty. “Seunghyeon is a great kid,” CRN track and field coach Brian Hoffman said. “I coached both he and his older brother as pole vaulters. Seunghyeon has been a leader on my team, especially last year during a tough situation during COVID rule changes. He is a positive guy to be around, and he keeps the other athletes at ease. Both he and his brother had had issues with their nerves with big games/meets, but last year Seunghyeon showed up big time to take second in the league meet. He PR'ed multiple times to move up multiple spots and get us eight hard earned points in the league meet. He is a funny kid who works hard, and I hope he has a great senior year.”
Away from the athletic arena, Kim is an excellent student. He is enrolled in two AP classes and has taken honors social studies since he was a freshman. Most of his classes have been accelerated. He is also active in the school’s theater department. “That’s really fun,” Kim said. “I work in tech, I do the sound. It’s a whole different crew of people, but I think it’s important to expand my experiences and my connections.” The technical aspect of theater comes naturally to Kim, who plans to major in computer science with a final list of schools that includes Pitt, Drexel and Temple. “Seunghyeon is the epitome of what we as teachers and coaches at Council Rock North strive for in our desires for all our students and athletes to become as they transition through the years,” Greiner said. “Each year, he has immersed himself in the high school experience while still maintaining his stellar academic standing. Seunghyeon has mastered the concept of time management to allow himself to be fully successful in all his endeavors.”
To read Kim’s complete profile, please click on the following link: https://www.suburbanonesports.com/featured-athletes/male/seunghyeon-kim-0097697
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