Former Naperville North soccer star Alex Barger has always been a step ahead of most of his peers.
That was true when he earned a starting role as a defender for the Huskies during his freshman year in 2019. Barger replicated that feat in an even more impressive way as a freshman at Indiana last year. He was named the starter at left back for the season opener against Notre Dame and started 23 of 24 games for the Hoosiers, who advanced to the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals.
“I didn’t know what to expect going in, and all I could do was really work hard in the offseason last summer,” Barger said. “I was really determined to earn my spot, and it’s been great ever since.
“Having the opportunity to play in the Big Ten is really something special. There’s a lot of great talent, lots of guys that get sent off to the next level.”
Never one to rest on his considerable laurels, Barger has been busy honing his skills this summer while playing for River Light FC, an Aurora-based expansion team in the USL League Two. The preprofessional league provides top college players a 12-game schedule of stiff competition.
“This River Light program is really unique,” Barger said. “We obviously have a lot of players and a lot of competition, so getting minutes in a game is great, but then the training environment is even better.”
River Light’s roster has 53 players, of which 18 dress for games.
“I try not to play anybody more than 90 minutes in a five-day stretch, but Alex has made eight or nine appearances this summer, and that comes down to his availability,” River Light coach Charlie Latshaw said. “He makes a commitment, and he sticks to it, which is very valuable.
“A lot of college players are not the same way. They might show up half the time. But with Alex we’re blessed to have him from the very beginning.”
River Light, which is 6-2-3 heading into the season finale against Chicago City on Saturday, finished third in the seven-team Heartland Division. But player development is just as important as performance.
So, too, is the camaraderie Barger has developed with teammates like Notre Dame senior forward Michael Rossi, a Glenbard West graduate who scored twice in River Light’s 3-1 win against the Chicago Dutch Lions on Wednesday. Indiana lost to Notre Dame in the NCAA Tournament quarterfinals last season.
“Here at River Light, it’s great competition,” Barger said. “It’s really fun because we’re obviously very competitive rivals during our school seasons, but then we come here for summer and kind of really bond together. So that’s something special.”
Barger has been a special player since his days at Naperville North, where he was a two-time player of the year. He ranks second with 43 assists and seventh with 42 goals on the Huskies’ career lists despite playing multiple positions over four years.
Just as he did in high school, Barger takes most of River Light’s free kicks and corner kicks.
“I’ve been working on a lot on my services, my crosses, being able to put it back on my weak foot, and then it’s always beneficial to get that fitness up,” he said. “Those are two things I’m really working on.”
Barger is constantly working on his game because he has high goals, including helping the Hoosiers win their ninth national championship and playing professionally.
Latshaw said Barger has the physical ability to do that.
“It’s just about getting more minutes at the highest level possible,” Latshaw said. “He didn’t play academy like a lot of the other guys have, so this last 1 1/2 years has really been the exposure to the higher level of talent, and I think it’s just a matter of him getting comfortable with it.”
Barger doesn’t regret playing high school soccer instead of academy.
“A unique part of both Naperville North and Indiana is we’re very family-based,” he said. “We jell very well together. You can have a good team with great players, but if you don’t have those guys really bonding together, then I personally don’t think you can succeed as well as a program that is really family-oriented.”
Barger has been a key to that.
“We could use more Alex Bargers in the world,” Latshaw said. “We like him as a human being. He’s the first person to step up and say, ‘Hey, I’ll do volunteer hours’ in the community, which for us really shows how good of a human being he is.”
Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter.
