Coupeville Sports

Nick Dion (22) prepares to fly into battle during Coupeville’s soccer jamboree. (John Fisken photo)

 On to state! Dion (right) and Sebastian Davis head back to their seats with their district championship medal at this year’s Science Olympiad. (Janine Bundy photo)

Nick Dion is hitting the big time.

The Coupeville High School freshman will have a busy mid-April, as he takes a brief break from soccer season to join up with Sebastian Davis and head to Eastern Washington for the Science Olympiad state meet.

The duo won a title in mag-lev at regionals (“that was a lot of fun!”) and would like to keep the joy ride going all the way to nationals in Florida.

It’s been a busy first year of high school for Dion, who played tennis in the fall, rode the ski bus in the winter and is now one of just two freshmen to be kicking the ball on the pitch for the Wolves.

Staying busy comes naturally to him, and soccer has been a part of his life since he was young. He first picked up the beautiful game at age six.

“My dad liked the sport, so he just introduced me to it,” Dion said. “I enjoy it cause it takes strategy and skill to find where you need to send the ball.”

He favors his Spanish and science classes (not a surprise there) in school, and is intent on building his skills on the pitch.

“In the past, my goal is to try to get in the corners of the other team’s area,” Dion said. “I would definitely like to work on that as well as getting control of the ball as quick as possible.

“My goal is to get better at maintaining control of the ball, as well as getting in better shape,” he added.

Dion credits his father (“my dad liked soccer, so I got a lot of practice from him”) for helping him develop his game, but is also quick to pick up tips from older teammates.

“I have been learning a lot from the upperclassmen.”