VU Athlete Profile: Devin Gooch

Freshman Women’s soccer player Devin Gooch is from La Mirada, California, home of the Vanguard rival Biola Eagles. Devin began playing soccer at a very young age. Gooch took to soccer with great passion, allowing other sports she enjoyed like volleyball and softball to take a backseat, so that she could pursue soccer with everything that she had.

Devin describes the freedom she feels when she plays, “You forget about everything when you play, and it was super fun, because I was super fast, so I could just run and run and run.” With the talent that Devin possessed, and stellar play at several college camps, she had a bevy of schools interested in her. However, Devin showed interest in Vanguard because she enjoyed the closeness to her home, and the closeness to the beach. The choice of where to continue her education was still very up in the air for Devin though, and after a lot of prayer and really envisioning herself on campus, she finally decided that Vanguard was the place for her.

Devin is enjoying the start of her career at Vanguard, she loves not only the soccer aspect of it, but she also really enjoys the school side of her college experience. Gooch has said that she enjoys the small class sizes and the environment that surrounds her. She also enjoys the teaching staff that has been cultivated here. As a Business Major, Devin is grateful to be at a university where networking is such a priority. She believes that her four years here will equip her properly when she prepares to join the workforce, giving her an edge and something unique to offer.

Devin’s ambitions and desires for her career at Vanguard are nothing less than what is expected from a Gold Pride Lion. She wants to improve her skill set each year that she competes and win national championships, not one, not two, not three, but four, one for every year she competes. Devin  believes that she will live an extremely active lifestyle even after college soccer is over.

Devin is very interested in being as prepared as possible for life after Vanguard, interested in potentially becoming a produce buyer. Gooch is intensely devoted to her faith, says that she felt tremendous spiritual growth during the short time the she has already been here. Devin explained why she believes faith is so important, “Faith is everything in every aspect of life, faith is integrated with integrity, kindness, love and understanding. Sports aren’t easy, they get emotionally and physically hard, you need that little spark in you to keep going. I think faith is the foundation of everything that will ever be good in this world.”

Devin Gooch is not only an impressive soccer player, but also a respectable and admirable person overall. When you attend the next Vanguard soccer match, be sure to cheer extra loud for number 13.