After seven years of soccer gradually progressing up the soccer club pyramid, Max Gentry will continue up to the next level and play Division 3 soccer for North Central.

He started playing rec soccer at a young age but when he arrived at high school, his progress accelerated. At 15, he climbed the youth soccer pyramid joining the ECNL (Elite Clubs National League) Regional club Chicago Magic. Here, he received great coaching, gained experience, and improved his game immensely to help him secure a spot on the ETHS Varsity team as a Junior

“The coaches were great, and it was a great time, so I’m never going to forget that,” recalled Gentry.

After a successful junior season where the Kits were a top team in Illinois, Gentry earned a trial at an MLS Next team in the top division of national youth soccer, Bavarian United SC. Here, he gained exposure getting colleges looking at him. However, Bavarian United is in Milwaukee and since practices were frequent, he was committing hours of time 4-5 days a week just driving to his practice.

“I put myself into a position to get colleges looking but it’s a very big time commitment.” reflected Gentry.

Now, Gentry transitions to the much tougher college level where his physicality will no longer be an advantage but the standard.

“It’s gonna push me physically, so I’m going to have to adapt to that.” stated Gentry.

However, Gentry still remains optimistic and hopes to develop against the more challenging competition. Gentry will certainly develop at North Central College in Naperville, as they are a storied program with over 25 national championships across all sports.

“It’s a great opportunity to be able to play against older, more experienced players, so it’ll be exciting to see how I develop.” voiced Gentry.