Heather Laeufer

Pickerington North

• College: Will attend Central Michigan on a soccer scholarship. Plans to major in business

Question: The news has been about superstorm Sandy hitting the East Coast. What has been the worst weather situation you’ve been in?

Answer: An ice storm hit Ohio a few years ago, and we lost power. We just sat around in candlelight waiting for the power to come back on. The house got very chilly. There wasn’t much to do. We were lucky. The power was off less than a day. We talked and played games. We actually left reality a little bit.

Q: Could you imagine a storm like that hitting Pickerington?

A: That would be terrible. Ohio seldom gets floods. It would be catastrophic.

Q: I’ve heard through coach Greg VanKannel that you volunteer.

A: I volunteer at Amber Park, an assisted- and independent-living center. I do it through National Honor Society. We’ll take the senior citizens on a scenic bus ride. I will do manicures for the ladies. I’ll help out however I can. I think the residents enjoy our company. During the winter, spring and summer, I’ll work there two to three hours a week.

Q: Any other volunteering?

A: I’ve helped coach a 6-and-under girls soccer team. That was a lot of fun. I get a greater appreciation of what my coaches go through. The kids love to play and joke around. If someone has trouble with a certain phase of the game, I show her how to do it.

Q: And you scout opponents for the high-school team?

A: Yes, I do. I will take a couple of teammates on the road with me. We’ll watch the game and write notes. I look at the style of play of the key players. I watch to see if they change the way they play against certain players and teams. The biggest thing is being aware of a team’s strengths and weaknesses. You want to find out where the players like to play the ball.

Q: Coach said you organize team get-togethers.

A: It’s all about team bonding. We’ll meet at a player’s home and watch movies. We’ll play an Amazing Race-type of game. It’s a scavenger hunt. We’ll hide posters all over Pickerington. You give clues and try to find the posters. Sometimes, we’ll make the hunts short because of time. You begin to find the posters by unscrambling words. Last year, my team took so long to find a poster because we couldn’t unscramble the word. We do get much closer as a team. You get to know more about your teammates as people, as well as players. It’s going to be bittersweet when my career here ends. I’ve grown up around these girls. But there’s the future. I’m excited about that.

Q: How did your recruitment with Central Michigan begin?

A: I went to a soccer camp there and instantly loved the university. I really liked the players and coaches. I began emailing the coaches and letting them know when and where I would be playing. I committed to play there on Dec. 7 (of 2011). The school wasn’t on my radar until then. I was looking at other colleges. I was in my living room when I decided I would go to Central Michigan. My legs turned to Jell-O. I was excited as I dialed the number to tell the coach. That took a lot of pressure off me in one way because I knew where I would be going to college. But I still have to keep my grades up and develop as a player.

Q: Keep your grades up? You can take a month off and not lose many points.

A: I’m pretty serious about school. I take advanced-placement courses to get ready for college. Last year, I took macro-micro economics. This year, I’m in AP government and politics and AP statistics and calculus. I do fight for every tenth of a point in class. It’s not necessarily knowing the answer all the time, but knowing how to get the answer. I don’t like things handed to me. I like to earn everything I get.

Q: That sounds like you get that from your family.

A: There is a strong work ethic in my family. My mom (Sarah) and dad (Eric) established that in me. My father owns and manages Taco Bell and Long John Silver restaurants. My mother is a home-maker. If my father was remodeling a restaurant or building from the ground up, he’d take my sister (Linda) and me along. That made an impression on us.

Q: You are a goalkeeper, the loneliest position in soccer. Guarding a goal is a lot like standing in front of a two-car garage. That’s a lot of open space.

A: The goal is 24 feet wide and 8 feet high. I was 8 to 10 years old, and the soccer coach needed a goalie. I volunteered and fell in love with the position. I’ve been there ever since.

Q: You have to be fearless.

A: There are too many times when I’ve jammed fingers. I’ve lost count. I broke a pinkie, a ring finger, my nose and a wrist. That didn’t stop me. I went right back in there. My teammates are out there for me, trying to keep that ball away. I have to do my part. I can’t let them down.

Q: Shootouts are totally unfair for the goalkeeper. What are you thinking when the player is so close and has all that space in which to shoot?

A: I will look at the shooter and try to read her body language and eyes, and go from there. You know the chances are high that you will give up a goal. Getting scored on is one of the worst feelings, but you can’t dwell on it. You learn from the goal and try to keep the next one out. There is a lot of pressure, but you know your teammates have your back.

Q: Have you gone on an interesting vacation?

A: We went to Mexico near the Riviera del Maya. We toured Mayan ruins. That was amazing, knowing the architecture was constructed without power tools or earth-moving machines. How did they do that? The ruins were in what you could call a jungle, but there was a path that was pretty worn for us to walk.