KC's King opts for Thiel soccer
KARNS CITY — Dakota King was part of the ongoing soccer legacy at Karns City High School.
Now he hopes to create a legacy at Thiel College.
King — the second-leading goal scorer in Gremlins boys soccer history with 126 — signed a letter of intent with Thiel Tuesday afternoon.
“We've had a number of Karns City graduates play soccer there over the years,” KC boys soccer coach Jim Grenninger said.
King has a special connection with the Tomcats beyond that. Thiel's new head coach, Zack Walters, coached him the past few years with the Lawrence County Select FC club team.
Walters saw King play in the Gremlins' PIAA playoff loss to Deer Lakes last fall. He didn't need to see him play much high school soccer.
“He knows my skill set pretty well,” King said. “I played club soccer with a lot of guys on that Thiel team. The comfort level and chemistry will be there.”
Thiel last played a men's soccer season in 2019, going 0-14-3. The program is 20-77 over the past six seasons.
The Tomcats' roster currently has 17 freshmen or sophomores on it.
“They've struggled in recent years,” Grenninger said. “Dakota really matured as a player over this past year. He realized it's not only about scoring goals.
“He bought into a defensive style of play and we were a better team for it. That attitude will help his game transition to college and help Thiel's program as well.”
Karns City won the District 9 championship last season. King has no problem going to a college team struggling to find itself.
“I'm looking forward to doing my part in developing a winning culture there,” he said. “I want to leave a legacy, be part of a team that turned the program around for years to come.
“It's going to take me a while to adjust as a young player, but I feel like I can take a run at some of the records there. I want to break those records.”
Thiel's career goal scoring record is 24. The career assists mark is 15.
King plans to major in environmental safety and minor in sports management.
