Deer Lakes grad Michael Sullivan earns role as freshman on Pitt soccer team
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Michael Sullivan isn’t taking French this semester, but the freshman midfielder for Pitt occasionally gets a crash course on it while walking through campus.
Three Pitt players — 2020 ACC Offensive Player of the Year Valentin Noel, reigning conference freshman of the year Bertin Jacquesson and Raphael Crivello — are from France and will speak their native language when together.
Sullivan, a Deer Lakes graduate and the 2020 Valley News Dispatch Player of the Year, isn’t shy about asking for English translations.
“I’ve been picking up little things in French,” Sullivan said Thursday, a day before No. 16 Pitt (6-3, 3-1 ACC) defeated Syracuse in double overtime at Ambrose Urbanic Field. “Sometimes, I’ll ask them what they are saying when they’re having conversations in French.”
Sullivan’s willingness to listen and ability to learn also are paying off on the pitch, where he quickly is becoming a trusted player off the bench for the Panthers, who reached the College Cup (national semifinals) for the first time in May.
Sullivan, an outdoors enthusiast with a love for fishing, went from scoring 22 goals with 11 assists and earning all-state honors in leading Deer Lakes to its first WPIAL soccer championship last fall to playing in four consecutive matches against elite competition this fall for Pitt.
In an impressive 4-0 win against then-No. 4 North Carolina, Sullivan got on the field for eight minutes. His usage increased to a season-high 22 minutes in a 1-0 win at Penn State. In a 3-1 loss at Wake Forest, where Pitt coach Jay Vidovich once worked, Sullivan played 13 minutes.
Finally, in a 2-0 win at No. 2 Clemson, which defeated the Panthers for the ACC Tournament championship last season, Sullivan made a two-minute cameo.
“I’m just thankful that the coaching staff has put me in position for minutes,” Sullivan said. “The biggest thing the coaches are preaching to us is to do your job, and I’m willing to do whatever job they ask of me, whether that’s in a game or being able to do that at practice. Whatever they want me to do, wherever they want me to play, any chance I can take to get on the field and be with the 11, I’ll take it.”
For now, Sullivan’s main roles are to provide energy, a pair of fresh legs and hustle off the bench.
Other than minutes played, it hasn’t led to any offensive statistics for Sullivan, but Pitt’s goals are much bigger than any individual achievements.
And for Sullivan, he’s listening to advice from Vidovich and his staff far more closely than those occasional French lessons he gets on campus.
“Coach Vidovich is always asking us, ‘How are you going to make yourself 1% better today? What can you do to make yourself 1% better?’ Whether you’re one of the 11 guys on the field or coming off the bench, you’re looking to improve,” Sullivan said.
For Pitt, it could add up to two additional wins in the NCAA Tournament, but getting there won’t come easy. After last season’s success, the Panthers never get a night off, not in the ACC and no matter the opponent.
“We’re everyone’s championship game. Every team brings everything they have against us,” Sullivan said. “But as long as we do our jobs, the sky is the limit for us.”