Captain Benjamin Sollom Is a Leader On and Off the Field

SEATTLE - Ben Sollom is a senior at O'Dea High School. He is a captain on the O'Dea varsity soccer team and plays the role of the final defender, goalkeeper. While Sollom is a star on the field he can not play more of an important role in the O'Dea leadership system. Sollom is key in his sport and in his school.

These past couple of years have been challenging for Sollom as he has had four concussions in two years. For him to be juggling between soccer, academics, and trying to be healthy, it has to be incredibly difficult.

Sollom states, "They were all from playing goalkeeper in soccer games. All the concussions happened when I rushed out for the ball and dove at it. Even when the ball was in my hands, the striker still decided to shoot. My latest concussion came from me rushing outside of my box and the striker headed me in the side of the head. In terms of affecting my play, I have to wear padded headgear this season to protect my head from another injury. Other than that I just had to get back to working hard and developing as a player each day.".

Sollom has had his dreams set on being a goalkeeper in college soccer, but with the recent health issues he has faced, he is rethinking about how long he can keep getting injured without long-term consequences.

"The recent concussions were really just the tip of the iceberg. I have been playing soccer 5+ days a week for about 11 years now. I truly love playing soccer, but for me I felt it was time to focus on my education. I decided to pursue my dream school for education rather than play for a decent college. In addition, my intended major of Biology requires a lot of labs that cut in with practice time. I will definitely make an effort to play club soccer or intramural soccer at the University of Notre Dame." Says Sollom.

While Sollom can keep playing in his free time and possibly on a club, this is his last year playing keeper for O'Dea, yet it doesn’t affect his mindset around the season and his enormous impact on the team. His teammates wouldn’t want another goalie if they had the option.

Favian Martinez, a senior on the team and a key part of the offense states "I think as a leader and a goalkeeper you have to control the backline and he uses his voice and communicates with the team strongly, His communication with the team is incredible. During halftime he always picks up the team no matter winning or losing and while he may not be an official captain, he is a leader on the field".

All and all Ben Sollom is an irreplaceable and outgoing player who is integral to the O'Dea soccer team, while he may not be continuing his soccer career it seems Sollom still loves the game and will keep it as a hobby.