Gracie Sullivan was having a blast.
And that’s how she became a goalie.
Sullivan is a senior at Nazareth Academy High School, and as a kid, she played on a soccer team that was coached by her dad. The team was also coached by Archbishop Ryan senior Riley Lukach’s dad.
Because of that, both girls got a job they didn’t actually ask for.
“It’s a funny story, my dad and Riley’s dad were the coaches, and since we were their daughters, when nobody wanted to go in net, it was us,” Sullivan said with a laugh. “We would always split it, but when we’d go to Beach Blast, I loved playing goalie.
“My dad said I can’t just pick and choose when I want to play goalie. It was probably when we were like 10? After that, I just figured if I’m going to do it, I might as well do it. I’ve been a goalie ever since.”
Maybe those fathers are visionaries. Maybe they’re the great soccer coaches, maybe they pushed all the right buttons. Because Sullivan didn’t just become a goalie, she became one of the best in Southeastern Pennsylvania.
Sullivan was selected as First-Team All-Catholic goalie, a great achievement. She also was named the Most Valuable Player of the Catholic League.
And through her efforts, coupled with the great play of the girls in front of her, the Pandas had a season to remember.
Nazareth lost one game during Catholic League regular season play, falling to Archbishop Wood in a tight battle.
Sadly for the Pandas, history repeated itself in the Catholic League championship when the Vikings downed Nazareth for the second year in a row in the title game. The loss not only cost the Pandas the championship, it kept them from competing in the state playoffs because Wood and Nazareth are both 2A schools and only one school from the PCL can go.
But the loss did little to take the shine off the great season Sullivan and her teammates enjoyed, especially while playing Catholic League foes.
The Pandas joined the PCL prior to the 2023-2024 school year, and their first time in the league, they upset teams in the playoffs to make the finals.
This year, there was no upset, Nazareth proved that during the regular season and the postseason.
“I think our first year, our biggest problem was the physicality of playing in the Catholic League,” said Sullivan, who lives in Feasterville. “In the Academies League, it’s physical, but it’s not PCL physical. You want to win 10 times more for bragging rights because you’re playing schools like Ryan and St. Hubert. All schools that have great rivalries where everyone knows each other.
“We didn’t know what to expect. I think our fifth-place (finish in 2023) didn’t show who we were but we made it to the championship. This year we were prepared, we knew what we were going into. We knew what it takes to win. And we had a great team who did that.”
They also had a huge edge at goalie.
But Sullivan was more than a wall between the pipes. She was the leader the team needed and was the eyes of the team, scanning the field from her position and shouting out help.
“I tried to be a good leader, I thought we had a good team and everyone got along, but when they needed something, I would help,” Sullivan said. “I was very proud, I think I can be proud of myself. Only two goals against you is really good. But it wasn’t just for me. My team, my goalie trainer prepared me. Winning MVP is a nice accomplishment of mine. I put in a lot of work to get better, and so did the team. It was a great season and I’m proud of everyone.”
She is sad her soccer career at Nazareth is over, but she’ll remain plenty busy.
First she has to figure out if she’s going to play basketball, something she did the first three years. But she might turn her attention to next fall, when she’ll continue her soccer career at Drexel.
“I didn’t know if I wanted to stay close or go far, but I love the city when I visited and it’s a good distance,” said Sullivan, who is also a member of Morgan’s Light, Naz-A-Thon and Panda Standup, which is a cancer awareness club. “It’s close enough, but far enough at the same time. I knew Reese (Power) and Riley are both going there. That made my decision easier. Both are playing soccer, childhood best friends. And I love the soccer program and the coaching staff. It’s going to be a good fit for me.”
There’s still a chance Sullivan will play basketball. Last year she helped the Pandas advance to the Catholic League semifinals, and most of the team is returning.
But if soccer was her final sport, she has plenty of reasons to be proud. And plenty of reasons to be happy about her athletic career.
“I’m proud of my four years at Nazareth, I think I had a great four years here,” Sullivan said. “Especially my teammates. They made my experience so much more fun. They’re all my friends. We were very tight, very very tight. This is definitely the closest team I’ve ever been a part of.
“We didn’t win the championship and we wanted that, but I’m so proud of everything we did. We made the finals twice, and we accomplished a lot. I’m very proud of the team.”
