Don’t call it a comeback.

Benjamin Schoedel is an active member of the Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, but his real passion is playing soccer. 

Schoedel said playing on both the intramural team with his fraternity brothers and the soccer club team would mean the world to him, but he is not putting a lot pressure on himself. 

“We’re really close outside of the soccer field and it’s really fun to play soccer with the guys because it’s not just brotherly love, it’s competitive,” he said.   

For now, Schoedel continues his pursuit to play the sport he loves at the next level.  

“If I can make it on the team I’ll be really thankful,” said Schoedel. “Being out for so many different parts of the season throughout high school and select soccer, I’d be so thankful to have one more shot to be able to play at a high level.”

Right now, Schoedel is in the process of trying out for the WSU men’s soccer club, which has a history of success including scoring their way to a 5-3-1 record in the spring of 2013.

“The first tryout went really well and I feel like if the next one goes well, there’s a good chance that I could make the team,” he said. “Having a group of guys who also love soccer as much as I do, it’s an awesome atmosphere.”

Schoedel has played soccer most of his life. At four-years-old, his parents enrolled him in a local recreational league, as they saw a potential star in the making. 

“I’m the first one in my family to play soccer,” he said. “They (my parents) always told me when I was a little kid that they would throw balls to me, but I would just put them back on the ground and kick it to them.”

It was his life-long dream to play for a Division – I collegiate school.  Schoedel made the high school varsity team as a freshman, but spent his high school years mainly on the bench constantly battling injuries.

“Each year I got an injury that took me out at least half the season, so I wasn’t able to get in my full potential,” said Schoedel. 

As a freshman, Schoedel fractured his spine in two spots, forcing him to miss the remainder of the season. Teams and coaches constantly scouted his high school teammates, but each time they attended a game to see Schoedel compete, they saw a young man injured on the sidelines.

To this day when he plays on the competitive five-on-five men’s intramural team, he occasionally experiences pain on his back. 

“I thought I was going to play college and get scouted, but I wasn’t able to play most of the time,” he said. 

Schoedel is now staying in shape by constantly walking the hills on the WSU campus and going on long runs outside in Pullman.  However, he rarely spends any time practicing at a soccer field. 

“I like to juggle the ball a lot, that’s how I keep my touches on,” said Schoedel. “I just juggle in my room or outside with friends.”