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SPRINGFIELD — Julius Walker doesn’t get nervous anymore, not since the days when Greenwood played Springfield Catholic.
Once a raw freshman who would be his own worst critic, he’s grown into a 6-4 force as a senior, one that has led the Blue Jays back to the Class 1 soccer quarterfinals by word and action.
Not to say he was anything other than a physical specimen when he was 14 years old, as head coach Chris Shull echoed.
Now, those words come softly for Walker, except when he’s helping coach up the underclassmen. His actions have yielded 18 goals, second most on Greenwood this year, and six assists. His latest tally came in the Class 1, District 6 Championship last week when the Blue Jays defeated College Heights Christian for the third time this season. It was the last Greenwood goal, and it helped stop a string of eight straight runner-up district finishes.
“Those years where we came in second, I feel like we definitely could’ve won it,” Walker said. “It meant a lot to finally get past that round and now hopefully go farther in the state tournament.”
Greenwood is an experienced bunch, boasting seven seniors, including Walker. He may not have picked up the game until middle school, but he’s known his teammates for most of his life, having come to Greenwood in second grade. At a school that has an enrollment of 123, that means something.
Safe to say, the chemistry is there.
“You know everybody in the hallway down to almost middle school. You know the people in the stands. You know the middle school ball boys. It’s something that I think a lot of other schools don’t have, that family mentality.”
Naturally, Walker is eagerly anticipating his senior season of basketball. It’s his first love. He’s a 1,000-point scorer and plans to play the game at the next level.
But if there was one thing that could keep that hunger at bay…
“I don’t know if he’s telling me the truth or not, but he tells me he wants to extend the soccer season so he can miss a couple weeks of practice,” Shull said. “He’s not quite ready to put the soccer ball down yet.”
That may be thanks in part to the relaxed approach Walker takes with him onto the pitch. During basketball season, it’s more serious.
Note: that doesn’t mean a less intense approach to his fall sport.
“For soccer, I just get excited, trying to get the guys on the team going,” Walker said. “Basketball, I’m not going to say as much to anybody. It’s more of a one versus one mentality. I’ve got to beat the guy in front of me. Soccer, you can’t really do that. It’s a team, so I try to rally the troops.”
That vocal nature has become one of his strongest suits, and a far cry from the underclassmen whose mind would race wondering what his elders and coach thought of his play.
“It’s almost like he sees himself and remembers being a freshman and how he got down on himself,” Shull said. “He’s trying to avoid that. He can see it in those kids’ eyes. He’s been a really big part of why our freshman class is doing so well.”
With another gutsy performance against Crocker on Saturday, they could all find themselves in the final four.
