However, when searching for that perfect student-athlete, the one who works hard both in the classroom and in competition, the one who is humble and doesn't look for attention, the one who other student-athletes can look to as a success story, stumbling upon Seattle University men's soccer player Derek Rogalsky (Richland, Wash.) should end that search.
Rogalsky joined the Seattle University men's soccer program in the fall of 2006, the season the Redhawks advanced to the NCAA Division II Tournament, won the Far West Region, and moved on to the Elite Eight for the second time in three years. In 2007, he appeared in three matches, making his contribution to a squad that won its sixth conference title in seven seasons and earned another berth in the national tournament.
Last season, as SeattleU started its transition to Division I, Rogalsky worked his way into the starting lineup for the second half of the season, helping the Redhawks win six of the seven matches he started. He has started ten matches this season as the SeattleU men's soccer program enters the Mountain Pacific Sports Federation in preparation for becoming eligible for the NCAA Division I Tournament in 2010.
That is only half of Rogalsky's story. Even with all the commitments associated with playing collegiate soccer, Rogalsky, majoring in biochemistry, has maintained a 3.862 grade point average, the highest GPA on the men's soccer team and among the highest of all Seattle University student-athletes. In the past, he served on the school's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee (SAAC) and participated in the year-end athletics awards show.
For the past year and a half, Rogalsky's academic focus has been on research funded in part by the M.J. Murdock Charitable Trust, an organization that, according to its website, "seeks to enrich the quality of life in the Pacific Northwest by providing grants and enrichment programs to non-profit organizations that seek to strengthen the region's educational, spiritual, and cultural base in creative and sustainable ways."
In research overseen by Dr. Joseph Langenhan, assistant professor of chemistry in the school's College of Science and Engineering, Rogalsky has been attempting to modify digitoxin, a drug normally used to treat congestive heart failure, into a drug that can treat cancer. The school received a summer stipend from the Murdock Trust to continue the project.
"Derek did a tremendous job in my lab this summer, continuing the great work he did last summer and during the 2008-09 academic year to work toward identifying new anticancer agents. In fact, he's done such a great job with my other students that we are on the cusp of writing two publications to communicate our research findings," Dr. Langenhan said.
Rogalsky is one of two Seattle University students selected to present an oral seminar at the Murdock College Science Research Program Fall Conference at Gonzaga University this weekend. The student presentations are considered the highlight of the conference, with Rogalsky scheduled to speak early Saturday afternoon.
"I am somewhat nervous about this, because I will be giving the presentation in front of 700 or more people, but I am also honored to have been chosen and look forward to the experience," Rogalsky said.
Even though he has another year of eligibility, Rogalsky will end his collegiate soccer career at the end of this season and concentrate on applying to medical school. He will also apply for a teaching position at a high school in Haiti, his way of following the mission of Seattle University in becoming a leader for a just and humane world.
Rogalsky's final home match will be Sunday, Nov. 8, against Cal State Bakersfield beginning at 1 p.m. at Championship Field, with Senior Day ceremonies to take place shortly before kickoff.