EDWARDSVILLE – Jacob Mulvihill made many key contributions to Edwardsville's boys' soccer program the past four years he was a member of the Tigers.
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Mulvihill will be taking his talents to the next level as he signed a letter to attend St. Ambrose University in Davenport, Iowa (a part of the Quad Cities), beginning this fall; he'll be joining the Fighting Bees program, an NAIA-affiliated member of the Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference with schools like Olivet Nazarene in Bourbonnais, Ill.; Robert Morris University in Chicago; Roosevelt University in Chicago; Saint Xavier University in Chicago; and Governors State in University Park, Ill.
“Their academic program for physical therapy was my main focus,” Mulvihill, who had three assists for the Tigers last season, said. “They had the soccer program which I was thrilled about as well; there's a lot of international students who travel and go to an NAIA school; it'll be interesting to play with those guys. The coach (Jon Mannall) is from England and there's a lot of students from England as well who are playing.”
Many of the athletic facilities at St. Ambrose were recently renovated, Mulvihill said, and that helped attract him to the school. “They're newly up-to-date, which was a plus for me,” Mulvihill said. “They weren't too far away – four hours. It's far enough away but not too far. It's close to home, but far enough to get some independence.”
“It's pretty exciting,” said Tiger coach Mark Heiderscheid about Mulvihill's signing with the Bees. “It's a little bit bittersweet; it's always nice to see your players move on and have good things. Certainly, there's some anxiety but there's some loss that you feel when your kids graduate when you spend the years with Jacob as a middle-schooler; you spend that much time together, it's hard to believe that they're going to graduate and move on.
“As what he brings to the program, he's been such a stellar player and starter for us since his sophomore year; he's a field general for us – he knocks the ball around so well. He's a hard player – he does everything for us.”
Heiderscheid built his attack around Mulvihill's skills. “He's a guy we built through him,” Heiderscheid said. “He moves the ball side-to-side so well, a very technical player – he's the classic center-midfield player with a great work rate and has a great skill level, connects and passes the ball so well; he basically checks every box you have besides being a hard-working, humble kid. St. Ambrose got a great player and even greater person – you know what, it's always hard to get that kind of a package.”
Mulvihill will be majoring in physical therapy at St. Ambrose.
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