Senior Vance Sheffield, fresh off helping the Falcons capture a state championship, will trade his La Salle jersey for Northern Illinois University (NIU) colors next fall as he joins their Division I soccer program.
“What you put into the game, or what you put into anything in life, you’ll get back out of it,” Sheffield said.
This mindset has guided Sheffield throughout his soccer journey, which began at age three and evolved into a competitive passion after his family’s brief move when he was seven years old. After his record-setting senior season, helping the Falcons win the state championship, Sheffield is ready for the next chapter.
He joins several La Salle seniors advancing to collegiate athletics and being featured in The Falconer’s Next Level Seniors, where he’ll pursue a pre-med path while competing at the Division I level.
Originally, Sheffield played goalie before switching to striker in fifth grade after his coach watched him shoot and told him to make the change. Despite enjoying playing goalie, “I would rather be scoring goals than stopping them,” he said. “It’s just a better feeling.”
Choosing NIU was not an easy task for Sheffield as it’s quite a trip from home for him. He had multiple offers after being named All American, however, his visit to NIU made a lasting impression on him.
For Sheffield, a driving reason behind his final decision was the school’s coach, who he described as upfront, saying to him “‘we want you here, you’ll be valued as a player and as a person,’” he said.
“I think that’s all you can ask for,” Sheffield said.
The distance scared him at first, but for him, with such a good opportunity, “you kind of just have to take it,” he said.
Sheffield’s schedule goes beyond soccer, as he plays football and basketball, meaning he has to balance two sports in the fall, training for basketball and soccer in the winter, and playing for his club soccer team in the spring — all of this on top of academics.
He attributes his work ethic to a few things: his father, who played Division I basketball at Texas A&M University, his soccer coach, Danny Mwanga, and his faith.
His father, the one who introduced him first to the sport, basketball, is one of Sheffield’s biggest role models, guiding him through life, and teaching him about dedication.
Danny Mwanga, a former MLS forward and personal coach to Sheffield, has been helping him train since his freshman year. He isn’t just a soccer coach but a life coach as well, offering Sheffield advice in all aspects of life.
“I can just go to him for anything,” Sheffield said.
Mwanga didn’t have much growing up yet still made the most out of the opportunities he was given. Because of this, Sheffield really pushes himself to take advantage of the opportunities he is given.
“He kind of reminded me that I’m gonna make it if I just continue to work hard,” he said.
Lastly, Sheffield’s faith has been a key component of keeping him on track throughout some especially difficult times.
At one point, “I kind of didn’t want to play,” Sheffield said. “And I turned to God, and God was like, ‘soccer, soccer is your thing.’”
For Sheffield, everyone has a talent. Because his gift is soccer, he aims to make the most out of it.
“I know that what I put into the game, it’ll give back to me,” he said.
Sheffield’s love of the game doesn’t just apply to his athletics and schoolwork, but to his social life too. He said that he is fine with giving up spending his weekend with friends or missing an event here and there, because he knows it’ll all work out in the end.
Sheffield’s friend group all have big aspirations, so “we all understand that what we do outside of hanging out with each other is really important,” Sheffield said. “So when we come together, and we do find time to hang out, it’s that much more special.”
Sheffield wants to follow a pre-med track as a backup plan for playing soccer at the professional level, giving him a good career to fall back on. Sheffield’s parents were both in the medical field themselves, with his father being a chemotherapy specialist and his mother being a physician’s assistant, so “it just feels right,” he said.
He feels ready for the large workload of being a Division I athlete at the same time as fulfilling his pre-med path because of his time at La Salle. For him, due to the effort and time he’s invested throughout his high school career by playing three sports, he believes he’s developed the follow-through and work ethic necessary to handle it.
Sheffield says his biggest accomplishment over the last four years was winning the 2024 OSAA boys soccer state championship. The Falcons were an underdog throughout the season, starting off with three losses. It took everyone coming together to succeed. With just a few seniors and such a rough start, “no one thought we were gonna win it,” Sheffield said.
“That was definitely the most special thing,” he said. “Over all the personal awards and everything.”
All of Sheffield’s sacrifices have accumulated into his goal being achieved, and he said that the tireless hours he has put into his high school career were worth it.
“God has helped me and made me realize it’ll pay off,” Sheffield said.
