Nova Nation All-Access Coverage

By Mike Sheridan

Villanova Media Relations

Truth is, Zach Zandi's earliest soccer experience is one he was too young to recall now. Yet his first work on the pitch, at the age of three, has become a staple of Zandi family lore.

"According to I've been told, I was playing up, on a 4-year old team," recalled the Villanova junior midfielder with a chuckle after completing a practice with his teammates last week at the Higgins Soccer Complex. "I got the ball and went to the closest goal and shot it. I scored and was running around, celebrating. The older kids were kind of looking at me and saying: `why would you do that? Then I found out I had scored on our goalkeeper. I started crying.

"My first goal was an own goal."

If it was a somewhat inauspicious soccer debut for Zandi, what's come after has been notably more upbeat. Zandi is a junior at Villanova now, a team captain alongside senior Andreas Bartosinski, and a linchpin for a unit that believes it has the stuff to build upon an NCAA Tournament appearance in 2017. One of the Wildcats' best playmakers will help lead his team into its home opener on Tuesday when VU (0-1-0 after an opening night double overtime loss at No. 13 Virginia) hosts Philly Soccer Six rival Temple (0-1-0 overall) at 4:05 p.m. (live stream will be available via the Nova Nation All-Access Pass).

Soccer has been a major part of Zandi's entire life, own goal and all, ever since. Zandi's father, Carl, played collegiate soccer at West Chester University and his mother, Mary, was a soccer player as well before a torn ACL in high school cut short her playing days. ("My Dad says that my Mom was a better player than he was," notes Zach Zandi). A sister Addy plays collegiately at Dickinson University and another sister, Sydney, is a freshman player at the University of Virginia.

Oh, and did we mention that a cousin, Max Zandi, is now a freshman teammate of Zach Zandi's at Villanova?

"We are a soccer family," confirms Zach Zandi, wo grew up in West Chester and attended Henderson High School.

Zandi's role for most of his career has been akin to that of a basketball point guard. He is often tasked with connecting matters in the midfield and his knack for helping to build scoring opportunities has been clear in his first two seasons. In 2016, for instance, he contributed three goals, four assists and 10 points despite missing two games due to injury.

"My Dad used to coach me when I was younger and he always wanted me to have the ball at my feet," stated Zach Zandi. "When you have that, you can dictate the play and control the tempo. Ever since I have mostly played in the center midfield."

By the time he was in fifth grade, Zandi had developed a clear target. As part of a school assignment the students were asked to list a life goal. On his poster board was the aim to become a professional soccer player.

"Soccer has always been fun," he explains, "but it was around that time when my goals were set that I wanted to become a professional soccer player."

One important door opened when Zandi was invited to train with the Philadelphia Union Academy.

"That was a great experience," he stated. "It gave me a lot of exposure to the first team staff because I got to train with the first team a couple of times. I think that whole system put me in a position to pursue my career further. It set me on a good path."

With his ambition defined, Zandi wasted no time in assessing what colleges might be the best fit from a soccer and academic standpoint. There was an unofficial visit to Wake Forest and another planned for Syracuse before he arrived at a decision during his junior year at Henderson.

"Villanova really stood out to me," Zandi recalls. "I loved the community and the coaching staff. Being close to the Union was another positive."

In December 2013, Zandi was on campus and stopped by the office of head coach Tom Carlin. As the discussion wound down, he told Carlin that he was committing to attend Villanova.

"I think I shocked him," Zandi remembers. "He was pretty excited."

A little more than 18 months later, Zandi was enrolled and ready to begin his freshman year. However, a bout of mononucleosis that had knocked him out of the Union Academy's season cut a large hole in his fitness level as he began his freshman soccer campaign at VU.

The health setbacks caused him to miss eight games as a freshman in 2015. Yet though he spent more time in a pinnie jersey on the sidelines than he would have preferred, the glimpses of skill offered were tantalizing. In the end, he started 10 games and finished with a goal and pair of assists.

Last season, Zandi appeared in 19 of the Wildcats 21 games as he dealt with a nagging injury. His contributions were pivotal to Villanova's success. One of his priorities in the run-up to 2017 was trying to avoid those injuries. To that end, he trained with Bethlehem Steel and followed precisely the plan of new Sports Performance Specialist Kevin Miller.

"Going through a full season without those (injury setbacks) would be huge," he stated. "I really think I can do it this year. I've been pushing my body and taken care of it the best I ever have.

"Kevin is unbelievable. I think his work will really help us in the long run, in November, when we hope to be making a push in the postseason."

On the field, Zandi has proven to be a difference maker. His focus now is on setting a leadership tone as a captain while continuing to demonstrate his knack for creativity in the midfield. And it matters not a whit to him to how it all plays it out. Goals, assists, and points are fine, but secondary to the business at hand.

"As long we're scoring, I'm very happy with it," Zandi says. "I don't care if I'm doing it, setting it up, or three passes before it happens. It doesn't matter to me so long as we're scoring as a team."