Noah DeDominicis excelled at multiple sports until he made the decision to fully commit to soccer.
Dedominicis, who was born and raised in Brantford, and despite his focus on soccer, looks back fondly during his years playing hockey.
“I grew up playing hockey and soccer [but] some of the best times of my life are actually when I was playing hockey…we used to play in a tournament down at Notre Dame in Indiana….me and my dad would rent a van with the players and their dads and drive down together,” he said. “It was an awesome experience…just being with [them] and stopping for food and staying at hotels together. That’s what I love about hockey…it’s one of those sports where you do everything as a team, and you’re always together [and] that’s some of the best memories that I have as an athlete.”
However, DeDominicis would make the ultimate decision in his teens to focus on soccer, a sport which he continues to love, and instilled by his father.
“In the end, I picked soccer…my love for the sport just took over. I was always a little bit better at it than I was at hockey…but I knew I had a better opportunity staying with soccer [but] I was pretty fortunate to play both sports as long as I could,” he explained. ”My dad has always been my coach for soccer, and I think that’s a really special thing because I got the chance to absorb my passion for it through his love of the sport.”
While DeDominicis thrived in multiple sports while he attended St John’s College in Branford, as well as playing for Hamilton United in his teens, it was a difficult period with the pandemic putting any recruitment efforts at a stand-still.
“My time at St John’s was cut short and I only got half of my high school experience, but at the same time it was a great time in my life where I was playing as much as I could, [and] as often as I could. I was playing for the football, hockey, and soccer teams [as well as] doing some track and field,” he noted. “COVID was during my recruiting period as I was graduating at that time. Obviously, the borders were closed, so my goal of going to a US school was a long shot at that point because there was no way for me to get exposure.”
However, DeDominicis was provided an opportunity to play in the United States despite the pandemic.
“I was fortunate that my coach for the Hamilton team I was playing on had a connection to St. Bonaventure University. So that was how I got my chance to play in the US, because if it wasn’t for that connection, then the route to that NCAA would be very slim,” he said. “Although at the end of the day, it didn’t work out [as I] just didn’t see eye to eye with the coach there as it happens sometimes, I’m thankful for that opportunity because I learned a lot,” he said.
Although the forward only played a year at St. Bonaventure before transferring to Brock University in 2022, it was a very important time in his life.
“I grew a lot as a person in that time…I learned a lot about myself [and] about the world of soccer and the world of sports…because before that, I was a bit naive. I heard stories from people saying ‘it’s the manager that can make the player,’ [but] I never really believed that could happen to me, and [that experience] opened my eyes…[and] it took a lot of perseverance for me to come back from that,” he said. “Also, COVID made it extremely difficult to do what I had hoped to do, but I wouldn’t trade in [that experience] for the world. I think I’m the person that I am today because of the difficult time that I went through during those two years…the year leading up to moving to the States and then that year I played there. Even during my year there, I met a lot of good friends that I still keep in touch with.”
However, DeDominicis has thrived at Brock University over the last three years, as both a student and athlete. His success on the field culminated in a strong 2023-2024 season while he maintained his studies, pursuing a degree in Business Economics.
“We made it to the Ontario University Athletics (OUA) semifinals. We lost in penalty kicks to the Carlton Ravens…at the time they were ranked second in the nation….it was a little bit of a Cinderella season for us [where] we finished second in our league. We got the playoff bye, beat MacMaster at home, and then we went up against Carlton,” he said. “We went up one-nil, and I thought we were going to hang on, but they were awarded a penalty kick in the second half…[Although we lost in penalty kicks]…that’s the nature of the game. It was the best season for me here at Brock. It was a lot of fun.”
Along with his time at Brock, the veteran forward has played for Scrosoppi Football Club in the League1 Ontario league, and has his sights on continuing his soccer journey after his graduation in a few years.
“The next step for me would be to play in the Canadian Premier League…I’m currently playing for Scrosoppi FC [and] we won the league title last year [which also] qualifies us for the Canadian championship in the new year,” he stated. “It’s a domestic tournament for all professional and semiprofessional teams in Canada. So, we’ll have the opportunity to hopefully play against some of the top teams in Canada. And hopefully that will be a good stepping stone and a good test for me to get to the next level.”
