Lucas Santana '18 Recruiting Profile

    Since I was young, I have aspired to play for as long as I can and ultimately become a professional who will represent Puerto Rico in international competition.  From what I have seen though, most of my older friends usually stop playing competitively once they finish high school, so I do not want to suffer that fate. However, I know that once I achieve what I set out to do in soccer, I will have to retire from the sport and work in an other field. That's why playing collegiate soccer is ideal for my aspirations. It combines an academic preparation with a stepping stone into the professional game. In addition, it gives me the opportunity to be part of an organization greater than myself and to help others, as I do here in Puerto Rico. I put in my best effort to help others (my teammates) to do the best that they can, so that the team does better collectively. When I play in college, I plan to help my teammates do the best they can so that the men's soccer program can be the best soccer program it could possibly be.

     None of this could be possible if it weren't for the amount of effort I put in into being the best student and athlete I possibly can, though. Coming from Puerto Rico, where training opportunities (especially for goalkeepers) are extremely limited, I have created out-of-the-box ways to improve my skills. I contacted a goalkeeper coach in Pennsylvania where I can learn goalkeeping skills and techniques, and I fly up to where he is to train with him regularly. On top of that, on a daily basis, I recreate his training exercises back here at home to perfect my technique. Since coaches are limited in my area, I use the wall behind my house to serve the ball when I train. Through this dedication and effort that i put into training, I have become the goalkeeper and person that I am today. When I go to college, I can assure you that I will continue to dedicate all my efforts to become the best goalkeeper I can possibly be and help the soccer program succeed. 

    In addition to playing soccer, I also want to succeed academically in college because when I can no longer play, I will pursue as a professional in the engineering field. I am already preparing for when that day arrives by doing several things. For example, hard work at school has helped me maintain a GPA of 4.0.  Also, since I know how important the SAT's are for admissions, I have been studying for them and will continue to do so until I achieve the score I want to send out with my college applications. On top of that, I am going to spend my summers studying at different summer programs at prep schools and universities in order to achieve that extra preparation and education that is hard to come by in Puerto Rico. Overall, I believe that with enough studying and training, I can achieve whatever goal I set to do in college.