With the game on the line, Tim King knows who to count on.

The Gorham boys’ soccer coach looks to Jackson Fotter, a three-time SMAA All-Star and 2016 Player of the Year.

“He always has that burning desire to win,” King said. “This year, he really worked on becoming a leader, and it made a big difference.”

Fotter entered his senior year with 34 career goals and finished with 65, along with 23 career assists. He helped lead the Rams to the state championship, where he scored their only goal. For his ability to come through in key moments, Fotter was recognized as the Clutch Player at the Varsity Maine Awards.

“That award meant everything to me as an athlete,” Fotter said. “It just signifies that, in those hard moments, you can still play the same as you would in any other game and that your team trusts you. It’s kind of like a leadership role.”

Fotter said he originally considered not playing high school sports and, instead, playing club soccer year-round for an academy in New Hampshire. He doesn’t regret his decision to play for Gorham and said he “couldn’t have asked for a better high school career.”

“I learned a lot of things about leadership and confidence,” Fotter said. “Having your town behind you is just an amazing feeling that I’ll never forget.”

A forward in soccer, Fotter gave Gorham a 1-0 lead in the Class A final on Nov. 5. Bangor immediately answered to tie the score and eventually won the crown in penalty kicks.

But Fotter’s clutch moments aren’t limited to just soccer. During the 2016-2017 basketball season, he put up 21 points – including four 3-pointers – in the fourth quarter of a Class AA South quarterfinal game against Thornton Academy when the Rams were down by 14.

“We almost came back,” Fotter recalled. “Unfortunately, we ended up losing that, so I don’t know if those are good examples.”

Jokes aside, Fotter has unquestionably made a difference on both the field and the court. He notched a hat trick in the Rams’ 5-1 soccer quarterfinal win over Westbrook and scored the go-ahead goal to win a national championship with his Seacoast United’s U-17 premier squad over the summer.

“His desire to win separated him from other really good players,” King said.

Along with conference honors, Fotter has made All-State for two years and was the Maine Sunday Telegram’s 2016 boys’ soccer Player of the Year. He also received the 2016 Steven LaBrecque Memorial Award, given by soccer officials to a player who displays sportsmanship, leadership, ability and teamwork.

Fotter will play soccer for the University of Massachusetts at Amherst. He plans to study sports management.

“I fell in love with the school the first time I visited,” Fotter said.

Taylor Vortherms can be contacted at 791-6417 or

tvortherms@pressherald.com

Twitter: TaylorVortherms

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