{"id":231757,"date":"2026-04-14T20:41:10","date_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:41:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/231757\/"},"modified":"2026-04-14T20:41:10","modified_gmt":"2026-04-14T20:41:10","slug":"jacksonville-native-is-helping-breathe-life-back-into-flagler-mens-soccer-the-flagler-college-gargoyle","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/us-fl\/231757\/","title":{"rendered":"Jacksonville Native Is Helping Breathe Life Back\u00a0Into\u00a0Flagler Men\u2019s Soccer \u2013 The Flagler College Gargoyle"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Michael Alaimo\u00a0<\/p>\n

For four years, the six-goal ceiling haunted Flagler College\u2019s leading scorers. Not since Matteo Costa\u2019s 18-goal explosion in 2021 had a Saint hit the seven-goal mark\u2014until Luke Williams stepped onto the pitch this fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

A junior from Jacksonville, Fla, Luke Williams, broke that with eight goals of his own this past fall. Williams helped Flagler College reach the third round of the NCAA Division II Men\u2019s Soccer championship and the Saints\u2019 second tournament appearance since 2013.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s awesome, I\u2019ve been here the whole time and nobody on the team has been able to score more than six goals, so I was happy to be the first to break that,\u201d Williams says.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Being a walk-on from Jacksonville, Williams says this sport has always been a part of his life and\u00a0retains\u00a0a light-hearted approach to the game.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cSoccer has always been a part of me; it\u2019s who I am as a person, and I just enjoy playing,\u201d he said. \u201cI remember my coaches had to tell me to stop laughing while playing because I was having too much fun.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n

This season, Williams tallied eight goals and six assists in the Peach Belt Conference, with one goal in the NCAA Division II national tournament game against Palm Beach Atlantic. With 15 goals, Williams is tied at ninth for all-time goals for Flagler College.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Williams\u00a0stated\u00a0that last season was the first time his team got into the NCAA Division II tournament, and how this\u00a0year\u2019s\u00a0go around is different from last year\u2019s.\u00a0<\/p>\n

\u201cWe had made it the year before, but that was the first time any of us had made it. So, we were\u00a0kind of just\u00a0nervous and not knowing what was going on. This year, round two, we were confident and calm, and I was able to score a\u00a0really good\u00a0goal against PBA,\u201d he said.\u00a0<\/p>\n

With William\u2019s senior season approaching in the fall, he has the chance to not only climb up in the stats but to help his team get further into the NCAA Division II Tournament next fall.\u00a0<\/p>\n

Since his junior year was breaking curses, his senior year will be about leaving a legacy and setting an example for other incoming Flagler College soccer athletes to follow.\u00a0<\/p>\n


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