Suzanne Stewart
Staff Writer
Ten days before the West Virginia North/ South soccer game – a game where the best high school soccer players from around the state are selected to play – Pocahontas County High School senior Trenton Brock received notice that he was among those selected for the South team.
“The selection is based on your overall athletic performance throughout the year and the competition level you bring to the game.” Brock said.
Prior to this honor, Brock was named to the All-Conference first team, All Region first team and All State second team. He was one of three Single A players to be selected for the prestigious North/South game.
An athlete for all seasons – participating in soccer, basketball and track – Brock was ready to finish his soccer career in high school – until he played in the North/South game November 24 at Glenville State University.
“It was an amazing opportunity,” he said. “It opened my eyes a lot because now I want to play soccer in college. I’m going to try out for a couple college soccer teams.
“It’s completely different than playing high school soccer,” he added about the North/South game. “It was crazy. It was like watching a college game.”
The players don’t get a chance to practice together before the game, so it could have been difficult to find a groove as a team, but Brock said the team worked well together.
“We might not have known each other beforehand, but as soon as we got up there and started playing, we just clicked,” he said.
The South team was winning during the first two quarters, and the game was tied in the third, but the North team pulled out ahead in the fourth, ending the game with a loss for the South.
But winning wasn’t important. It was getting to play a game on that level.
“It was a high scoring game for high school soccer,” Brock said.
Now that soccer is over, Brock is hitting the hardwood on the basketball team, which had a scrimmage Monday night against Tygarts Valley.
Looking to the future, Brock is touring college campuses and has received several offers to join track teams, but now he is reconsidering and plans to try out for a couple soccer teams and see what happens.
“I think I’m up to fifteen track offers,” he said. “I was leaning toward a track offer, but after that game, it completely switched. I have an assessment with a college recruiter and he’s going to set me up with different colleges.”
Brock is also a regional director for HOBY – Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership.
This past summer, he attended the World Leadership Congress in Chicago, Illinois, and met HOBY members from all over the world.
“I represented West Virginia in the congress,” he said. “There were six different countries in my group – the U.S., Canada, the Philippines, Mexico, Taiwan and Malaysia.
There are a lot of opportunities in the world, and Brock is not afraid to go after them.
