Keane Hamilton

What are you doing currently?
Lecturer in exercise science and director of women’s soccer athletic performance at
Appalachian State University 

How did Strikers shape you as a person?
As a player the biggest impact was my 4 years on the U19 team with Geoff Birnbaum. I got to
start as a young player learning from teammates that had already made a college soccer team.
Then I got to progress to becoming a leader over the following years. As an adult, Strikers gave
me opportunities as a coach and administrator within the club. I got crucial experience and it
helped me shape what I wanted to do professionally, and ultimately led me to my current
position where I’m getting paid to do what I love.

Can you briefly describe your recruitment journey and how you ended up at Fort Lewis?  
I was playing with the strikers U19 team at club regionals in Aurora, CO my junior year. We
played Colorado in the group stage and the Fort Lewis coach was at the game to watch some of
the CO players. We ended up winning 3-2 and I had a good game. He then watched the rest of
our games that tournament and I think we actually won our group. He contacted me after the
tournament to set up an official visit and the process went pretty quick and smooth after that.

What was the most challenging part of the recruiting process?
Initially the biggest challenge was getting exposure. Getting seen by Fort Lewis was a fortunate
circumstance. My other top choice school was Seattle University. I was seen by them just
because of a recommendation from my then high school coach, Shane McCorkle, who had
played there. I really liked both those schools and once I had offers from them the tough part
was choosing between the two. In the end the main deciding factor was finances.

Do you feel that the recruiting landscape has changed since you were in college?

It has changed a ton. I played before YouTube so I never even had to make a highlight video. I
relied on playing in tournaments out of the state to be seen in person by coaches. On one hand,
now it is easier for high school kids to contact college coaches and send high quality highlight
videos to get seen. But it’s also more challenging because coaches get too many emails to read
them all and there are more and more tournaments so it has become more difficult to stand out
from the crowd.

You have a unique perspective as a player, a high school and club coach, and as a
college coach. What advice would you give to current athletes going through the
recruiting process?
First is playing at as high a level as possible, to get exposure at high quality tournaments and
see what the standard looks like for players you’ll be competing against at the college level.
Next is to talk to your current coaches and research college programs to be more specific in
your search. Finding 5-10 schools that would be a good fit for you and pursuing those is more
effective than sending out lots of random emails. And lastly is to use the connections that are
available to you. Strikers has sent a ton of players to different college programs and most of
them are still involved in the Missoula soccer community. This is an incredible resource in the
college search and I don’t think enough kids take advantage of it. A call to a college coach from
an alumni is incredibly impactful.

What do high school athletes not understand about college sports?
I think the biggest misconception is what the most difficult challenges in college sports actually
are. People think the hard part will be the conditioning sessions, or the physicality, things like
that. But what I have consistently seen athletes struggle with the most is the mental and
emotional side of college athletics. How will they handle: not starting (or even not playing at all)
for a couple years, playing out of position, going through multiple coaches and having to prove
themselves over and over again, getting injured, redshirting, and all while being away from
home and their support system. 

What was the best part of playing college sports? What was the hardest part?
The best part about playing college sports is the connections you make, both personally and
professionally. I have incredibly close friends from my college team, and connections with
former coaches and teammates have helped me a ton in my career as well.
The hardest part is dealing with unexpected setbacks. It’s never a completely smooth
experience and you’ll always have challenges you can’t predict.

Is there anything else you would like to share with high school athletes about playing
college soccer, college in general, or life after high school?
For college soccer, read my answers above and make sure you’re mentally ready for all those
challenges and want to play bad enough to go through all of it. For college in general, wait as
long as you need to choose a major and then go towards what interests you. Take lots of
different classes and find out what you like, don’t pursue something you don’t enjoy. For life
after high school, don’t worry if you don’t have a plan or know what you want to do. Keep an
open mind and keep chasing things that you’re willing to work hard for and you find meaningful.