Another of the Grayslake Central Longeneckers will go to Goshen
Take a tour of Goshen College in Indiana and, if you're a soccer player, you come across an action photograph of Kenton Longenecker back in the day.
"There's a sweet picture of him dribbling the ball," Isaac Longenecker said. "That's pretty cool to see."
Goshen has seen more than its share of Longeneckers, including Isaac's grandfather. A Grayslake Central senior, Isaac recently signed a letter of intent with the NAIA college. The Maple Leafs' 2014 roster includes Isaac's big brothers - Caleb, a senior midfielder, and Philip, a sophomore midfielder.
Isaac could have gotten his kicks at another college. He chose Goshen not necessarily because of his family's history, however.
"I just think that this felt right," Isaac said. "I don't think of it as a family tradition. I wasn't pressured to go there. I wasn't scared of breaking the mold."
A small Christian school in Elkhart County, Goshen offered Isaac more than just a chance to play soccer with his brother Philip.
"I had visited the school a couple of times," Isaac said. "Academically, it's a great school. The soccer program is really improving."
Under first-year head coach Arron Patrick, the Maple Leafs went 10-9-2 this fall, losing to Indiana Wesleyan in the Crossroads League tournament championship game.
"The coach (Patrick) reminded me of the coaches that I've had in the past (at Grayslake Central)," Longenecker said of Rams coach Steve Feldman and former coach Mike McCaulou. "His energy is very contagious. He was playing with us on the field (on a visit). It got me excited to play soccer there next year."
Longenecker's grandfather, Dean Mann, attended Goshen. So did Dean's daughter, Shelly, who married Kenton. The whole family has studied biology. Isaac has decided to pursue ... business.
"I did break the mold with that one," Isaac said with a laugh. "I guess I like numbers. I really don't like biology that much."
When Philip was at Grayslake Central, hip injuries denied him a chance to play soccer with Isaac. Next year, the brothers get a chance to make up for lost time.
"Phil really wanted me to go (to Goshen) and was pumped about it," Isaac said. "Caleb and Phil got a chance to play with one another, and we actually all get along great. I had a chance to play with Phil, but he had broke his hip multiple times during his junior and senior years. I never really got the full experience."
Isaac spent his first couple of years at Grayslake Central playing in the back. He spent the last two falls as an attacking midfielder, and this past season he produced 18 goals and 11 assists for a Rams team that finished 15-6 and won the Fox Valley Conference Fox Division championship. Longenecker tallied 36 goals and 18 assists in his last two seasons.
"I thought he worked very well with the other center mid," Feldman said. "He had the mentality of always moving forward and attacking. He knows what to do with the ball and what to do without the ball, and is still able to come back on defense. He was a smart and tactical player with a nose for the net."
Rest assured, Goshen knows what it's getting when it nets a Longenecker.