Gallup

CRANBERRY TWP — Talent and dedication have combined to give Gabe Gallup a very unique opportunity.

The Cranberry Township resident, who recently finished his sophomore year at North Catholic High School, agreed to an offer earlier this month to join the development academy for FC Cincinnati, a Major League Soccer team.

“I'm super-grateful for this. I've been working for it for a long time and am excited to work hard and become better,” said Gallup, who has been a member of the Pittsburgh Riverhounds' academy the last three years.

It was there that he attracted attention and traveled to Cincinnati last fall for three days of tryouts.

A forward, Gallup will continue to train with the Riverhounds before leaving for Ohio later this summer. He is appreciative of the experience he received in Pittsburgh.

“I've improved a ton since I started there,” he said. “My technical ability has gotten better, including my first touch. I'm more confident with the ball.”

Cincinnati's academy team, which will include 22 players, will train four to five days per week and play games on weekends, including contests against the academy teams of other MLS franchises. That regimen will run August to November and pick back up from January until June.

Gallup will enroll at Milford High School, northeast of Cincinnati.

“My aunt lives five minutes from the school and I will be staying with her,” he said.

Gallup was a starter for a portion of North Catholic's games his freshman year.

“Technically, he was a very talented player with a high IQ,” said North coach Aaron Kelly. “He just needed to grow.

“Our first practice last summer, you could see it, he had grown a couple of inches and gained some weight and he was a completely different player.”

Gallup totaled six goals and 12 assists as a full-time starter in 2019.

“Joe (Kearney) and Ryan (Augustine) were our top scorers (74 combined goals), but Gabe set them up for a lot of those,” said Kelly. “He often made the pass before the assist and he also gave us another option up top.”

Kelly knows Gallup's departure will take away offensive punch from the Trojans entering the upcoming season, but said: “We want what's best for Gabe and we're excited for him.

“This opportunity, it wasn't handed to him. He had to earn it.”

Gallup dreams of playing at a Division I college and possibly at the professional level. The experience he will receive in Cincinnati can only help him toward that end.

“I'm looking forward to the amount of high-quality training I'm going to receive,” he said. “It will be super-competitive.”