Nick Gillogly Cape Coral Seahawks Senior Soccer

Timely goals and clutch defensive play sparked the Cape Coral Seahawks to three wins and a District 5A-15 Soccer Championship last week, but senior defender Nick Gillogly says their success had as much to do with the heart displayed by each player in the lineup.

The Seahawks have a roster filled with underclassmen, but seemed to come together as a team at the right time, after an up-and-down regular season.

“To me, age and experience isn’t everything,” Gillogly said. “To me, it’s how much heart you have and how much you want to win and our guys have shown that.”

Gillogly returned this season as one of the anchors of the Seahawks’ young defense. Though the unit has grown throughout the year, Gillogly’s leadership was evident during the district tournament.

The Daily Breeze Male Athlete of the Week led a strong defensive effort in a 1-0 victory over rival Mariner in the championship game Friday. He also gave the offense a lift in victories over Ida Baker and Fort Myers.

Against Baker, with the score tied 1-1 in the final two minutes, Gillogly’s corner kick assisted the game-winning goal by Gaston Sola. He added two more assists in the a 3-2 upset win over top-seeded Fort Myers.

“Coming from defense, every defensive player wants to score,” he said, “but scoring a goal isn’t everything. Thank God I was able to put the ball where it needed to be and my forwards were able to put it away.”

Originally from Connecticut, Gillogly moved to Cape Coral when he was 10. He’s played soccer and baseball for the past 13 years, including the last four at Cape High.

His Seahawks had an encouraging soccer season last year, reaching the regional quarterfinals. They’re back in that position again, this time hosting a regional quarterfinals game Thursday at Dave Warkentin Stadium, after defeating Mariner for the district championship.

“Beating Mariner was a great accomplishment,” he said. “We want to come out with the same intensity and keep going.”

Honorable mentions:

Tyler Korytkowski, senior, Mariner soccer: Scored both goals in a 2-1 win over Gulf Coast in the district quarterfinals, and scored the game-tying goal in a 2-1 win over Barron Collier.

Xavier Battle, senior, Ida Baker basketball: The point guard sparked a 72-58 win over Cape Coral with 11 points and 10 assists.