Athlete of the Week: 10 questions with Tim Vaughan, New Trier boys soccer

Tim Vaughan is a senior forward for the Trevians. He was an All-Conference and All-Section pick last season.

1. Do you have any pregame rituals or superstitions?

Usually I like to put my headphones on and listen to some ’90s or ’80s rock. I like Lynyrd Skynyrd or Nirvana. And then we have this area called The Shed, and that’s where we meet before every game and go over our tactics and discuss the gameplan. So that’s my pregame ritual.

2. What do you hope to do next year?

I don’t know if I want to play soccer or, I do track as well, so looking at maybe running as well in college. But my top schools are Indiana, Wisconsin or Illinois, probably. That would be for academics.

3. What would be your dream job?

If I could do anything, ideally I would be a professional soccer player. I really love the sport, but it would be tough to make a lot of money with that. Honestly, I think starting my own company would be fun. Being my own boss would be pretty cool.

4. What are your earliest memories of soccer?

I grew up in Germany and I think right away my parents put me in soccer. My earliest memories are — I have a twin brother (Lennart) — going to practice with him, biking from my house, and then kicking the ball around with some friends when I was like 4 or 5 years old at the local park.

5. What’s been your top moment on the pitch?

I think last year when we played Evanston, like our biggest rival. It was a pretty intense game and I scored the opening goal. There were a lot of people there, and it was pretty electric. That was my favorite goal ever, just seeing everyone’s reaction. Everyone was super hype.

6. If you could play another sport, what would it be?

I think rugby. My dad is from New Zealand and my twin brother plays rugby. But I’ve always been really busy with track and soccer and never had the chance to play it. But I watch the All Blacks (New Zealand national team) at home with my dad. And I watch my brother as well. It’s a really fun sport.

7. What’s your favorite thing to do off the field?

I like to hang out with my friends as much as possible. I’m a pretty social guy and obviously having a twin brother helps; you have like a built-in best friend. … Just being around other people I guess.

8. If you are in Walgreens with a couple of bucks, what are you buying?

Probably a (light) blue zero-sugar Gatorade. That’s my favorite one. Then I’m probably going to grab some Baked Lay’s barbecue and some Sour Skittles as well.

9. What’s something people don’t know about you?

I guess I mentioned it. I spent 10 years of my life in Germany. I only moved here in sixth grade, in 2020. I speak German fluently. Not a lot of people know that about me.

10. What are this team’s goals and how do you get there?

Obviously we want to win the state championship, but also soccer, especially in high school, is all about making connections with the people around you. I am still in contact with a lot of seniors from last year who are now in college. I think that’s one of the best things about this sport. You grow so close as a team over a season. And that’s my personal goal: to connect with as many underclassmen as possible. And you can do that, connect as a team and everyone becomes best friends, that’s a really great way for us to be successful on the field. Then we trust each other and that’s how we get to the state championship.

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