DCA student athlete commits to play college soccer in SoCal

The coronavirus pandemic has changed a lot in the sports world, especially for high school seniors with the goal of playing at the next level.

Desert Christian Academy soccer standout Aidan Scott did not let the change in recruiting trends stop him.

Scott signed his letter of intent Thursday to play at Vanguard University in Costa Mesa.

"When I was walking on Vanguard's campus, it was just, kind of, one of those connections that you make. Like, you just see everything and you just see yourself there and I just didn't see that with any other campus. I just really felt the Lord was leading me to Vanguard," Scott said.

He said the NAIA school is offering him both athletic and academic scholarship. Scott says this made Vanguard stand out amongst the 51 schools that showed interest in him.

"I had many other offers, but it was just pure athletics and no academics, where Vanguard was able to give me athletic money and also academic money, so that made my offer a lot greater than the other schools," he said.

DCA Athletic Director Matt Garrison said this year's signing is even more special because schools have not been recruiting high school seniors as heavily due to the pandemic. He said it's a trickle down effect of college seniors being able to stay another year to play, which then limits the number of available spots for incoming freshmen.

Lucky for Scott, he was able to find his perfect opportunity!