Many college athletes go into their freshman year thinking they will never get to play, and they will just use that year to develop as an athlete and settle into their classes.  However, this certainly was not the case with Cape Henry alumni Sebastian Gunbeyi (‘18). Sebastian has been getting regular minutes as a freshman, as he has played in ten out of twelve games for the Lions this season, including seven starts.  Although Sebastian was getting regular minutes as a striker, he struggled to find the goal early on in the season, having played his first seven games and one assist. It took him eight games to finally score his goal, but it was probably the best possible time for him to score it.  It was tied 0-0 with Dartmouth as the game went into a golden goal overtime. Five minutes into overtime, Sebastian capitalized on an error made by a Dartmouth defender and sends the ball into the net to win the game on national television, for all his friends and family to see. Carter Atherton (‘20) says that he was watching the game live and when he saw the goal he “immediately stood up and started celebrating and recording his TV.”  Sebastian says this goal was “easily the greatest moment of his collegiate career so far.” His goal earned him the award of Ivy League Player of the Week. Since his goal, Sebastian has gone on to get the game-winning assist in their 2-1 win vs Harvard. Sebastian says that he is “really starting to find his form.” He is “playing with confidence and is excited about the playoffs.”

Like every athlete, Sebastian’s success did not just come to him overnight.  “With my time spent with Sebastian, I was able to see him show up to train every single day, never just going through the motions.  He also worked a lot on his own, which is key in becoming a top athlete,” says current Cape Henry soccer captain, George Selemaj (‘19).  In Sebastian’s final two years at Cape Henry, he was able to score 51 goals and provide 22 assists, placing his in First Team All-State both years, and both VISAA State Player of the Year runner-up and Tidewater player of the year runner-up.  His success was no accident. When asked one word to describe him, Carter Atherton says “determined.” George Selamaj says one word to describe Sebastian is “passionate,” because he loves what he does and does whatever he can to make himself better at it.  Both as a player and as a student, Sebastian strives to become the best he can possibly be. He claims that his “parents, coaches, and teammates” have been very influential in making him who he is, claiming that they have been so incredibly supportive of him in his journey through high school, and now through college.  It is very apparent that Sebastian will continue to be successful in his collegiate career, hopefully adding many more goals to his name.