Few put in as much work on the pitch as Gavin Hennessy (25’). He works hard day and night to perfect his craft and achieve his goals. His dedication has allowed his efforts to be rewarded by committing to play soccer at the University of Pittsburgh at Greensburg.
Gavin is a left-footed Maldini*. Last year his performances kept many dominant right-wingers quiet. He has honed dynamism and intensity in his tackling ability, and can stop runs from wingers early. He reads the game incredibly well allowing him to contribute to build-up, just as well as defense. An underrated aspect of his game defensively would be his interceptions. While not being the most physically imposing player, Gavin is strong in his 50/50s and retains the ball for his team more often than not.
Gavin’s commitment is significant because of his role on the field. He plays left-back for his club, Manassas United, along with high school, a position many overlook and tends to be a filler role. When you are younger, a coach may throw a random player there or whoever is left-footed on a team. Gavin possesses fairly strong technical skills, as in his passing, dribbling, and shooting are all at a good place for a defender.
The switch to Pitt would reflect a much more competitive development in Gavin’s journey.
“They’re very competitive, they want to win, and they take soccer very seriously,” Gavin said.
Gavin is also a legacy student at the school. “I have a bunch of family members that went there,” Gavin said when asked about the decision to choose Pitt to continue his soccer career.
Gavin is interested in winning with the team. He admires the coaching staff at Pitt and their ambition. “They’re all very friendly. They have a strong vision for the program. They’ve seen success before and made it to the conference championship a couple of times,” Gavin said.
Despite his big goals, Gavin still looks at the opportunities immediately in front of him. “I want to win districts for high school, and be first team district left-back,” Gavin said when asked about his final year of high school soccer.
“Gavin is an important part of our defense, he works hard to contribute,” Coach Spinelli said when asked about the player.
*Maldini is a famous Italian soccer player who was right-footed and played in the same position as Gavin. Gavin is part Italian and left-footed.
