PRINTED WITH PERMISSION FROM JC RIDLEY
Jan Luca Ahillen is a graduate student in the masters business
administration program and plays for NSU’s men’s soccer team.
Last season, he was named to the 2018 Fall SSC Commissioner’s
Honor Roll and logged a team-high of 1,505 minutes on the field
What made you choose NSU?
So I was looking at schools in Florida because I wanted to live close to the beach. I studied for two years in North Carolina before and I reached out to a couple schools and got into contact with Coach Watts. He then convinced me to choose NSU and I’ve been happy so far.
What is your position on the NSU soccer team?
Central midfielder. It’s basically the connection between the defense and the offense. We have to make sure everything is organized and talk a lot to the other midfielders, distribute the ball forward and make sure you are in the right spot to defend. My best [position] is central midfielder. I played for two years in North Carolina. This is my last year.
How long have you been playing soccer?
I started when I was like 3 or 4 years old. I’m from Germany and basically everyone plays soccer. If you were to play any other sport what would it be and why? I honestly don’t think I’m good at any other sport. I played tennis for like a year, but I was really young.
How have you been able to balance athletics with academics?
You just have to keep up with work and assignments. If you’re struggling, you [can get] so much help from the staff, from [NSU’s Tutoring and Testing Center] and from people that can work with you. You have all the help you need to stay on top of your work.
What is the most memorable part of being a student-athlete at NSU?
The loss against PVA last year [is a bad memory] because it was such a bad loss. Our win at Florida Tech in the semi finals at the conference tournament last year was a good memory. This year’s trip to North Carolina was pretty good. It was good to travel with the team. We got good results. I scored a goal which doesn’t happen that often.
What advice do you have for student-athletes?
Just enjoy [your] time here, it goes so fast. I’ve been here for three years and it goes by so fast
