Talent, and some time management, key to success for Myers Park boys’ soccer standout

Gavin Trosch is scheduled to graduate from Myers Park High next June with an International Baccalaureate diploma.

But he’ll also have a Ph.D. in time management.

Trosch is among a couple members of the Mustangs’ boys’ soccer team who walk the student-athlete version of a balance beam — splitting their time among high school soccer, club soccer, academics, and ... well, life.

“This year, I’m committed to playing all our school matches, but I’ll be honest with you — takes some scheduling,” said Trosch, standout center back for the Mustangs (8-1-2, 3-1-1 SoMeck 4A), who host South Mecklenburg (8-4-2) in a key match at 7 p.m. Tuesday.

It’s a balancing act that most of the Charlotte area’s top prep soccer players have faced over the years.

Former Ardrey Kell standout Taylor Suarez, now at Florida State, missed parts of the Knights’ seasons to play with the United States U-17 national team. Charlotte Latin standout Parker Rubinacci stepped away from his high school team as a junior last season, to play club soccer.

But many student-athletes try to balance time between high school and club commitments.

For Trosch, the meter skewed toward the club team for the past two years.

“I played here (Myers Park) when there wasn’t a conflict in the schedule,” he said.

Matter of priorities

He played in fewer than a half-dozen matches with the Mustangs as a sophomore and junior. He said he and fellow Myers Park defender Nelson Waple tried to arrange their schedules to be with the Mustangs for the big matches.

“Most of the matches we missed were the ones we knew we should win pretty easily,” Trosch said. “It was a matter of prioritizing.”

He said his teammates, several of whom also have club soccer commitments, were understanding.

“I never missed practices,” he said. “My teammates know I’m committed to Myers Park.”

He made his mark in those limited appearances, with four goals and two assists (as a defender) in six Myers Park matches last season.

This year, as a senior, Trosch decided to play all of the Mustangs’ matches. That means finding time for practices and games with both Myers Park and the Charlotte Soccer Academy teams, along with the difficult International Baccalaureate academic curriculum.

He played two to three high school games a week, then competes on weekends, when possible, with his Charlotte Soccer Academy team.

“Free time?” he asked, repeating a question. “What’s that?”

“Seriously, I have to schedule my time carefully, but it can be done,” he said. “And I have teammates who are doing the same thing.”

A late start

Trosch said he does it because he enjoys playing soccer.

It’s a sport he and older brother Liam, who played at Myers Park and then at the University of the South, began playing as children.

“We started by playing in the street, in front of the house,” Trosch said. He, Liam and friend Isaac Scheer (who also played at Myers Park and then at West Virginia) fell in love with the game.

“I got into travel-league soccer later than a lot of other kids,” he said. “My parents wanted me to hold off on that commitment.”

By then, Trosch was 13, and he excelled. He was named to a couple Elite Clubs National League (ECNL) regional and national all-star teams. Normally, Trosch played midfield.

“That’s probably my preference,” he said. “I like midfield, and I think I play pretty well there. But I’m a center-back here at Myers Park, and I like that role too.”

Under coach Bucky McCarley’s system, Trosch often serves as quarterback, able to view both teams in front of him and knowing how to get plays started.

“Some people think Bucky’s system is unorthodox, but he’s a really good coach,” Trosch said. “We have what I think is a special team this season.”

Mustangs’ extra fuel

He said the Mustangs have a little extra fuel this season because of a disappointing 3-2 double-overtime loss to Northwest Guilford in the first round of the playoffs last fall.

“It wasn’t a matter of the score or who we lost to,” Trosch said. “It’s just that we didn’t get to where we thought we should have gone.”

He said the matter of “unfinished business” was part of the reason why he is playing all of the Mustang matches this season.

“I know we’re capable of so much more,” he said. “Since our first practice this year, we’ve pushed one another hard.”

He said McCarley trains the Mustangs to deal with specific situations in matches — then adds different layers to those situations, so the team knows how to react to a variety of events.

“He keeps us thinking,” Trosch said of a coach who teaches a class called Theory of Knowledge in the IB program at Myers Park.

Rubinacci, the Charlotte Latin player who returned to the school team as a senior this season, told The Observer last month that finding a balance between school and club soccer is difficult.

“In the end, though, you have to decide what feels right for you,” Rubinacci said.

When told of the Hawk standout’s comments, Trosch agreed.

“This year, it feels right for me to be playing full-time at Myers Park,” he said. “Nelson (Waple) and others on this team have made similar decisions. I think that commitment is helping carry us.”