Whiteland senior goalkeeper Nolan Ferguson is the Daily Journal’s Player of the Year for boys soccer.
SCOTT ROBERSON | DAILY JOURNAL
Nearly 5,000 minutes in goal spread across four seasons of high school soccer weren’t enough to make Nolan Ferguson tire of the position he plays.
If anything, that time had the opposite effect.
Ferguson, Whiteland’s starting goalkeeper since early in the 2018 season, continues to consider the various possibilities being presented to him regarding continuing his career at the college level.
Those who witnessed the 6-foot-3, 185-pound Ferguson, the Daily Journal’s Player of the Year, accumulating any portion of his school-record 435 career saves know he has what it takes to remain involved in the sport he loves.
“Playing in college is something I’ve always strived to do,” said Ferguson, whose 134 stops this season kept the Warriors (7-9) in contention most matches. “I’ve always felt that I have big plans for myself in life, so that’s always been important to me. It’s something my parents have in instilled in me.”
And though it rings of cliché to contend Ferguson saved his best for last, he did.
His top matches statistically included the career-best 18 saves he provided the Warriors in a heartbreaking and season-ending shootout loss to Roncalli at sectional and keeping 17 attempts out of the net in a loss to the same Royals squad only 11 days earlier.
Asked why goaltender is the position that has always fit him best, Ferguson doesn’t hesitate:
“I’m not a good runner. I’ve never had any stamina as a runner,” he said, laughing. “Really, it’s just the intensity of playing goalkeeper. I love making a save and having the respect of my teammates.
“A lot of it is havening good leadership, too. Having the skills to communicate and being very personable and friendly — until the match starts.”
Despite finishing the season with a sub-.500 record, Whiteland actually outscored opponents, 33-27, permitting only 12 goals in seven matches against Mid-State Conference opposition. Four of the Warriors’ nine losses came either by a single goal or in a penalty kick shootout.
The numbers speak to Ferguson’s value. Interested in majoring in business regardless of where he continues his education, the senior was all business all the time when he stepped on the pitch.
“Nolan basically came in and started most the games his freshman year, and most the games his sophomore year. He had good size and was just really an intelligent goalkeeper,” eighth-year Whiteland coach Justin VanHorn said. “At the end of the day, Nolan maybe played on some teams where the back-line guys were a little younger.
“I think he made our team more confident going into games against really good teams. You’re kind of the last line of defense, so you need to know how to cut down angles if you have a forward dribbling at you one on one. That’s a very tough skill to teach, but it’s something Nolan did very early and has gotten better over the years.”
Better until the point where he became the best.
