Tied for the team lead with two goals and five total points, Pascal Trappe has helped lead the Binghamton men's soccer team to a record of 5-3-0 so far this season.  As a graduate student working to get his MPA (Master's in Public Administration), this is the first year that Trappe has been injury-free enough to play throughout a season.  Having to overcome obstacles of every kind, he has strived to be the best possible version of himself on the soccer field, in the classroom and to everyone around him.
 
His journey began when he was a freshman at St. John's University in 2011.  Noticing that he was not happy and not enjoying the game the same way he had for most of his life, he knew he needed a change. Eventually, he decided to transfer to Binghamton.
 
"That was best decision for me at the time," Trappe said. "Even though he didn't know me Coach (Paul) Marco really helped me and believed in me and that's what I needed."
 
When Trappe was first making his transition to Binghamton, it wasn't at all easy.  Although he transferred with a 3.7 GPA, the academic atmosphere was a change for him.
 
"My first semester here was very difficult," he said as he chuckled and shook his head. "I did not have a good GPA. I had to work really hard to get back on track because I messed up."
 
After hitting that rough patch, Trappe has worked his way back up to the top. He was inducted into the National College Athlete Honor Society last April and graduated cum laude the following month. The strenuous balance between athletics and academics is nothing new to him though, as it was something he was used to juggling back in Germany.
 
Once he entered the seventh grade, Trappe was enrolled in an elite school for sports. In addition to a full day of classes, the students were also required to practice two to three times a day.
 
"I took the 6 AM train to go to school and by the time my day was over it was 10 or 11 PM," Trappe said. "Then I would wake up and do it all over again the next day."
 
Transitioning from that to college life was not a huge challenge for him. The hardest part, he admits, was learning English.
 
"He could barely speak English his first year here," senior teammate Logan Roberts said.  "I've spent the better part of the last three years with him almost every day, so I'd say we are pretty good friends. I had to translate for him quite a bit.  It was different, but he's come a long way from that."
 
Aside from the language barrier, Trappe ran into some problems on the field as well.  During a game in his first season as a Bearcat (2012), he injured his hamstring taking a shot on goal.  He then took two weeks off in attempt to try and let it heal but it was no use.  It was in a game against Vermont on Homecoming Weekend of that season that put him out for good.
 
"I was running down the field when I felt it tear twice," he said.  He could even imitate the sound it made.  "No one realized what happened because I just crawled off the field. I didn't want to stop the game or anything, but I was done. I couldn't walk."
 
The next three years were arguably some of the toughest points in his life, as he continuously battled to heal the injury that no one could figure out.  After multiple treatments and multiple doctor's visits, the light at the end of the tunnel was looking dim.
 
"I had been given over eight cortisone shots in my hamstring," he said. "They tried acupuncture, shock wave therapy, everything single thing you could think of.  Nothing was working. I just had to keep reminding myself to be patient and stay strong."
 
Even through all of that, he still remained an integral part of the team, doing as much as he could to heal himself while still being a leader that they needed.
 
"Just having his support was one of the biggest things," senior Tucker Sandercock said.  "He knows so much about the game, so if he was at practice watching he would always give us input on anything soccer related which makes us better. He's all in all the time, no matter what."
 
His patience finally paid off, when he was able to play in a game against Stony Brook last year.  It was his first game back and he even struggled a bit in the first half with his hamstring.  His teammates were also nervous.  No one wanted to see him go through an injury again.  Yet, in the second half, he had somehow found the breakthrough he had been waiting for the previous three years. He scored his first goal since being injured.
 
"When I went back in, I could hear everyone cheering from the stands and it gave me the confidence I think I needed," he said. "Then I scored that goal and I swear I was flying. In that moment I was glad I never gave up- it reminded me why I love the game as much as I do."
 
When Trappe takes the field this season, he assumes the position of the attacking midfielder.  His goal is to get the ball and make something happen, from trying to get the players up front good passes to scoring goals. 
 
"He definitely understands the game on a very high level," head coach Paul Marco said.  "He's always two or three steps ahead of whatever play is happening on the field."
 
Trappe leads by example more than anything.  On the field, he helps his teammates by doing what he does best and they follow in suit behind him.
 
"He loves soccer," Sandercock said.  "He's been injured so much which has been hard, but now that he's back he makes everyone better just because he sets such a high standard for the rest of us."
 
Having played soccer since the age of four, he was always part of the younger crowd playing with older kids.  Now, he is the oldest on his team.  Some of the underclassmen even refer to him as dad.
 
"I started playing soccer in the year 1996 and I have guys on the team now that are freshman that were born in '97 and '98," he said. "I've played soccer for longer than they've been alive."
 
It is that and so many other things that makes Trappe the leader he is on and off the field.  His experience sets him apart from so many and that is rare to find. 
 
"The experience he has all across the board- with being enrolled as a grad student, fighting through injuries for the past three years, and now finally being able to play- the underclassmen are able to watch Pascal and see what he's had to do to overcome all these obstacles," Marco said.  "He's a terrific teammate and a great role model and sometimes that is exactly what a team needs."
 
Trappe has been a terrific teammate off the field as well.  Not only known for his academic accomplishments, many student-athletes at Binghamton will vouch for his ability to give a haircut to anyone in need.
 
"It takes him about 45 minutes to an hour to cut someone's hair," Sandercock said.  "He's very meticulous and precise about everything. I've trusted him to cut my hair probably over 20 times.  That has to make me his biggest costumer."
 
With his wide range in skills, Trappe has a lot of potential in store for himself after finishing his MPA. Still, playing professional has always been a dream of his since he was younger. 
 
"Getting into the professional business is very tough," he said. "I had seven or eight friends playing in the last World Cup and watching them reminded me that's always been my dream.  You have to have a lot of luck and stay healthy and for me it's mostly staying healthy."
 
The future is not here yet though and Trappe is still living in the moment and taking this season one step at a time.
 
"I need to listen to my body and stay healthy," he said.  "The rest will come with it.  The best thing is that I am managing to make it through a season for the first time. That is really exciting for me.  This season is going to be really exciting."