That Naperville North senior Sam Hess will be a leader this season isn’t surprising.

The Indiana recruit can’t remember a time when he wasn’t.

“As long as I’ve been playing soccer, I’ve always played that role on any team — not only in soccer, but just as a person,” Hess said. “I like to help others set the tone and really make a difference and be somebody to look up to.”

Hess, who started playing soccer when he was 5 years old, has done an exceptional job of that throughout his four-year career.

When Hess was a freshman, the Huskies had future All-Americans Alex Barger , Noah Radeke and Jaxon Stokes . Yet Hess didn’t shy away from advising them.

“We had all these studs, but in big games, Sam was getting into it, giving directions and guiding guys that were top-tier Division I pla

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