Gotta have heart (land)

PRINCETON — Matt McClure has his heart set on playing Division I soccer one day. For now, he has his eyes set on Heartland.

The 2008 BCR  Soccer Player of the Year has signed to play soccer for Heartland Junior College in Bloomington. He said was attracted to Heartland because he has family in the Bloomington area and feels it will be a good stepping stone for him.

“I want to go there and get noticed. I want to go D I, but we’ll see how it goes,” he said.

Princeton coach Jason Bird said Heartland was a good choice for McClure at this time.

“He’ll get to play at a college level, plus he will be at a smaller school and have a better student-teacher ratio,” he said.

McClure, who was first team all-sectional and NCIC all-conference, has received a lot of notice from college coaches already, Bird said, and will continue to do so.

“Matt’s got the skills to play. I know the last couple years we’ve been down at Bradley team camp, the Bradley coaches have been extremely impressed with Matt’s skill and ability,” Bird said. “Bradley had a down year this year, but were in the Elite Eight last year. So, they’re a top-notch program. If they’re seeing that type of talent in Matt, there’s no doubt in my mind there’s Division 1 programs that could use the caliber of player like Matt.

“A lot of times in D I it’s a matter of finding the right place at the right time.”

Bird said Heartland is sending its top two players to Division I next year, which bodes well for McClure’s prospects down the road.

“Heartland is a place that’s drawn attention to people. I think he can go down there and be extremely successful,” Bird said.

Heartland’s program is just in its second year, this season, under the direction of former Normal U-High coach Bodo Fritzen. Former Princeton Tiger Logan Ozburn, who was a freshmen soccer player at Heartland this fall, has helped show McClure around the school and provide insights about the Hawks’ program.

McClure, who set career and season scoring records at PHS, said he’s excited to get to continue his soccer career which he started in the third grade.

“I became really good at it. It just came real easy for me, I guess,” he said. “I want to be a leader down there.”

Playing club soccer in Peoria and serving as an alternate for the Illinois Select team last spring helped to really improve his game, he said.

“I played at a faster pace. I didn’t have much time to play with the ball and my vision got a lot better on the field,” he said.

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