Harelson Solves Identity Crisis With Soccer Taking Priority Over Baseball, Cheney Star Rises

When Cheney High’s Trevor Harelson used to put on a baseball uniform and look in the mirror, all he could see was his father.

So in the process of finding his own identity the past couple of years, he shed the baseball pinstripes for the psychedelic swirls of the soccer uniform.

In his first full season as a soccer player, Harelson, a senior, is making his mark on the Cheney Blackhawks’ soccer team.

Had he continued to obey the wishes of his father, David Harelson, Trevor probably never would have known the feeling of pursuing his own athletic desires.

Before joining the soccer team as a junior, Trevor played baseball and basketball like his older brother Tyler. Tyler was an all-state baseball player at Cheney last year and had a fine basketball career. So the same expectations were in place for Trevor.

“I decided not to play basketball this year, and the first response from a lot of people was, ‘Oh, well, your brother played, how come you’re not?”’ Trevor said. “I’ve gotten used to it now. I’m a lot more tolerant of it, but it used be really annoying.”

While it was tough to try to live up to his brother’s accomplishments, it was even tougher for Trevor to tell his father that he was giving up baseball for another sport.

“He grew up playing it and he likes to watch it. I just think it’s like sort of remembering how he was as a kid,” Trevor said. “He hitch-hiked to little-league games when he was growing up, when he couldn’t find a ride to the game.

“When I was a freshman, I didn’t know what I wanted to do. I played baseball for him, and I thought that was the way to go.”

Trevor started playing baseball and soccer at the same time in grade school, but had to choose in high school because both are spring sports. He made the wrong choice.

During the summer before his junior year, it became obvious to Dad that something must give - particularly his own wish for his son to play the game.

“I realized he wasn’t happy with baseball,” the elder Harelson said. “It was after this one particular summer league game that I realized that what I asked him to do wasn’t what he wanted to do. I told him it was time for him to make his own decision.”

Trevor went after soccer.

“I like playing soccer a lot more because it’s more active, I just got bored standing around in baseball all the time,” he said.

Harelson had a decent junior year for the Blackhawks. But this year his performance has been stellar.

“It’s too bad Trevor didn’t play in his freshman and sophomore years because I don’t know how good he could have been,” Cheney coach Mark Belstad said. “He’s awfully good right now.”

Harelson is the team’s second-leading scorer, and has 10 goals. He registered a hat trick in a 5-0 win against West Valley and had two in a 3-0 win against East Valley.

The Blackhawks are 6-0-0 and again look like the team to beat in the Frontier League.

Belstad is impressed with Harelson.

“For a striker, Trevor is really aggressive. A lot of players in that position sit back and wait to be served by their teammates. Not Trevor. He gets in there and wins the balls up front and converts them to scores.”

And David Harelson couldn’t be more pleased with what his son is doing.

“This is good for Trevor,” his father said. “Tyler was an all-state baseball player, and the expectations for Trevor were very high. I’m really excited that he is away from Tyler’s shadow.”

As well as the shadow of his father.