As the net ripples, senior Paul Sapilewski runs to the corner of the field in celebration as he scores his fourth goal in league competition and first against Eastside College Preparatory, sealing the game and giving the Pinewood boys soccer team its first win of the 2023 season. 

“That was one of my favorite games because I was able to celebrate with all of my best friends and with everyone there watching on senior night,” captain Sapilewski said.

Influenced by his mother who played soccer at Cornell University, Sapilewski got into soccer early, joining the American Youth Soccer Organization team, Woodside Soccer Club, at the age of 5.

“I played for six years at Woodside, moving up from the bronze team to the top team in our club,” Sapilweski said.

Just last year, Sapilewski left his childhood club and joined De Anza Force Soccer Club due to their wider expanse of college resources and higher level of competition.

“Moving from my junior to senior year, I had to make a choice on both college and my club playing career, so I chose De Anza Force because it has a really good path forward for college recruits and plays at the highest level,” Sapilewski said.

On Nov. 14, Sapilewski officially announced that he would be committing to Johns Hopkins University as a soccer recruit. Sapilewski is looking forward to contributing to the overall success of the Hopkins soccer program. 

“At Hopkins, I really just wanna add to the team in a meaningful way, whether that be through my leadership, my physical ability, my technical ability, or simply my personality,” Sapilewski said.

At Pinewood, Sapilewski has played on the boys varsity soccer team since his freshman year and has been a leader throughout his time on the team. With this season being Sapilewski’s last year of high school soccer, he hopes to give back and leave a lasting legacy on Pinewood’s soccer program. 

From scoring goals to playing hard-nosed defense, Sapilewski always plays with an edge, helping Pinewood go toe-to-toe with some of the best teams in their league. During his freshman and sophomore years, Sapilweski noted that the soccer team at Pinewood was not taken very seriously. Since his junior year, he has donned the captain’s armband and has led the team to hard-fought draws against highly-competitive schools like Menlo School and Sacred Heart Preparatory.

“My junior year is when I really got to step into a leadership role on the team,” Sapilweski said. “I could sense the team forming around a common goal, and this year as a senior I think I’ve seen that more so than ever.”

As this season comes to a close, one date in particular is circled on Sapilewski’s calendar: Feb. 10, senior night. Sapilweski’s senior night will be against Eastside College Preparatory School, where he hopes to end his Pinewood soccer career with a win.