Dylan Olson is a clinical finisher that is on his way to St. Louis
MINNETONKA, Minn. (BVM) — Dylan Olson was just happy to have a senior soccer season in the first place.
From there, he took advantage of the chance. Olson scored 19 goals and had five assists in just 13 games played during the 2020 fall season. He even tied a Lake Conference record by scoring six goals in a game against Hopkins.
“When I got a chance I just did my best to take it and it ended up working pretty well for me,” Olson said.
Olson has been making the most of his chances. As a sophomore on varsity for the first time, he mostly played midfield for a Minnetonka team that would take third place at state. Then as he was entering his junior year, Olson had a growth spurt and his coaches moved him to forward.
“I went up top and that was that,” Olson said.
At forward, Olson scored 18 goals along with six assists for the Skippers, making sure everyone took notice.
Olson credits his time playing as a smaller midfielder as a big reason why he has been able to take advantage of his size now.
“I think the main thing was that I was able to use the skills I had from being a smaller player on the field while now being one of the bigger players,” Olson said.
The height and speed added to the technical skills he always was working on made him a threat at the forward position. There are countless examples of Olson dribbling through multiple defenders on his way to scoring a goal and those foot skills were gained through constant work.
“During practices I’ve always liked to have a ball at my foot just dribbling around while the coach is talking,” Olson said with a laugh. “That hasn’t always been popular with the coaches.”
It may have been unpopular, but the results were hard to argue with and others were starting to take notice.
Last spring, Olson was approached by Saint Louis University which began recruiting him following his junior year. For Olson, it was just more validation that he was able to continue his career into the collegiate level. Even though COVID-19 made recruiting difficult, the Billikens were always there and Olson officially committed this year as a senior.
“I’m very excited to see where it goes and where this opportunity takes me,” Olson said.
It’s an opportunity that has been in the making since Olson first kicked a soccer ball before he was even in kindergarten. One that was first realized when he was moved up two years to play for his club’s premiere team and then solidified when Olson showcased his skills as a forward.
His high school career is over, but Olson is far from done scoring goals.
