Mark Blades on the pitch at NU. Photo by Stephen J. Carrera

As you probably know, English soccer star David Beckham moved to the US this summer to join US-based Major League Soccer (MLS). The arrival of the handsome star and his former Spice Girl wife has turned lots of Americans, including many here in Lakewood, into overnight soccer fans. However, soccer had already been a lifelong love for many Lakewood residents. One such Lakewoodite is Mark Blades, who is currently a sophomore on the Northwestern University team.

Blades, who moved to Lakewood as an infant with his family, began playing soccer in his yard at the age of three. He played in Lakewood recreation leagues as a child, and then played on the Lakewood traveling team with kids his age and one year older. At around that time he started playing for Ohio Premier, a leading club in the area. He then moved on to play for Internationals and then finally ended up at Cleveland Soccer Academy. Lakewood has had a strong tradition in soccer for many years, something he believes helped to develop his skills. "Lakewood has a good rec program and also a lot of kids play soccer in Lakewood, so I think the volume of kids adds to the level of play," says Blades.

Blades played his high school soccer at St. Ignatius, where he led the team to back-to-back state titles his junior and senior years. Ignatius finished the 2005 season, Blades’ senior year, ranked the number one team in the entire nation. In addition, he was named Ohio Player of the Year. However, it is his junior year that he remembers most fondly. "The highlight of my career was winning the first state championship my junior year because my brother and my two best friends were on that team with me." Mark’s older brother Gavin, who began playing in the same Lakewood yard, is now playing Division I college ball at Yale.

When it was time for Mark to decide on a college to attend, he had plenty of options. He chose to attend Northwestern University in suburban Chicago. "I decided to play at NU because it is a great combination of athletics and academics. On the athletics side, you get to play in the Big Ten and play against teams like Indiana and Ohio State. Then on the academics side I get to attend one of the best academic universities in the country."

Blades started all 22 games for the Wildcats during his freshman season of 2006. The transition to Division I college athletics is a difficult one in any sport, and soccer is no exception. "The college game is a lot faster and a lot more physical than the high school game," says Blades. "The speed of play is a lot faster in college and at the same time the game is a lot rougher." Mark smoothly made the transition, earning a place on the Big Ten All-Freshman team. He quickly impressed the coaches with his ferocious tackling and intense competitive drive. Mark’s play helped Northwestern to earn a spot in the NCAA tournament, something the program had only achieved once before in its history. The team then won three consecutive tournament games, including a win over traditional power St. Louis University in St. Louis. The team reached the "Elite Eight", the best finish ever for a Northwestern men's soccer squad.

NU head coach Tim Lenahan points to Blades as an important contributor. " Mark has emerged as one of the top left backs in the Big Ten." says Lenahan, "He showed his versatility last year when we moved him to right midfield where he did a great job in leading us to an NCAA quarterfinal appearance. He has emerged as one of the true leaders on our team in spite of just being a sophomore. It is no surprise that every team on which he participates, be it St. Ignatius, the Chicago Magic or Northwestern, seems to achieve unprecedented success."

The future seems very bright for Blades. NU is returning a lot of talent to this year’s team, and Blades’ goal is to win the Big Ten title and make another strong tournament run in 2007. Off the field, he has yet to declare a major at NU, but is leaning toward psychology. After he graduates in three years, he hopes to play soccer professionally. "It is has always been my dream to play soccer professionally and I am going to do everything I can to make that dream a reality."

If Blades plays in the MLS in 2010, he could be playing on the same field with the aforementioned Beckham. So what does a longtime soccer lover think of US BeckhamMania? "I think Beckham coming to the US is awesome for American soccer and I am excited about his arrival." says Mark, "I think he will do great things for soccer in this country and it seems that everybody is excited about him, which is great."