12 SportsUnion | AUGUST 2017
12 SportsUnion | AUGUST 2017
YOUTH
Soccer
As a little boy or girl , it is your dream to get to see how far your can go in your career . It starts off as fun , but then it turns into a job . The only problem with this job is that there isn ’ t a strong life expectancy .
By Matt Ondesko Managing Editor
It ’ s hard to fathom that at a certain age who can be considered “ old ” when playing sports . You see it all the time in tennis . A 30-year-old is considered past their prime . Just think about that for a moment , at 30 years of age it ’ s time to be thrown on the scrape heap .
Most people at that age are just finding themselves . They have finished college and been in the work force for a few year . At 30 , they might be able to catch their first real break . In sports , you better have a back up plan .
But , isn ’ t that what an athlete is supposed to have anyway ?
Very few go onto to play professionally . And even fewer go on to make big money . That ’ s what an education is for . It ’ s great to be able to get a Division I scholarship and go to college to play the sport you love .
You also need to be smart about what you ’ re doing . At some point your career will come to an end . Then what ? What comes next for the star athlete ?
Hopefully a solid foundation that leads then into the next faze of their lives . You know the next faze , the one that is scary . Your entire life you knew about the game you loved . Now you need to find something else you ’ re good at - for a lot of athletes it ’ s getting back into the game as a coach or athletic director - or whatever .
As long as it has to do with what got them there in the first place .
In the Western New York soccer community when you mention the name Brittany Heist you see people ’ s eyes light up . Heist was a dominate player at Lancaster High School before going on to have a solid career at Boston University .
She even played semi-pro
From the pitch to the desk :
A transition made easy and just recently finished her first season with the WNY Flash . At some point , though , Heist knew her career might not be what she had envisioned when she first kick a soccer ball at a young age .
She got that dose of reality in college when she had a talk with her coach .
“ I knew she was right , but didn ’ t want to think about coaching until I finished playing ,” stated Heist on her talk with her coach . “ She is an unbelievable coach and an unbelievable leader in the women ’ s game so coming from her I couldn ’ t be anything more than flattered and curious to see where it would take me ”
Where her post soccer career would take is on an interesting ride - a ride she probably never though of going on . Being as good and talented as she is , Heist knew she wanted to give back to the game that has given her so much .
It was just a natural fit that she would go into coaching young kids . Passing along the knowledge she has is the best way to stay active in the game . It ’ s also a great way to show the girls what hard work is .
“ I got into coaching throughout my high school years helping in the Lan-