Know Your Pride: Q&A With Jesse Bonilla

With his first season in the books, Regis men's soccer junior goalkeeper Jesse Bonilla took time to sit down with Regis Athletics in another edition of Know Your Pride. The Ramona, Calif. native discussed the thrill of playing goal and winning the school's first GNAC Tournament game.

Why did you choose to come to Regis?
Coach Capobianco reached out to me and said that he was looking for a goalie because the one he had coming in ended up not committing. Luckily for me, I hadn’t committed to a school yet and thought it was a great opportunity to branch out from San Diego and experience a new culture and atmosphere. I also knew it would be a great challenge but I also that I would have to get used to the weather. Academically, I was attracted to the nursing program it with the school being close to Boston I thought it would be a great place.

What do you like most about playing in goal?
My favorite part of playing in goal is how thrilling it is. How do I explain, when I make contact with someone or when I make a good save I get a real thrill out of it. I do find it a very mentally demanding position though. One mistake and the game could be done. I actually wasn’t always a goalie though. My junior year (in high school) I played right back for my club team.

There are times when you may not have anything to do during a game but have to make that big save at the end. How do you keep yourself mentally ready?
What helps me the most is to stay active throughout the game. Even I’m not touching the ball physically I’ll be telling my defenders where to move and where the attackers are. That helps me stay mentally into the game instead of zoning out which can be easy. I’ll also ask for the ball back (from my teammates) to stay engaged and even run around and stretch when the ball is out of bounds to stay loose.

The team had a big win over Mount Ida in the quarterfinals of the GNAC Tournament. What did that mean for the team?
The win was very rewarding. In preseason we had a goal of being in the top four. The GNAC had us ranked seventh so we were kind of the underdogs heading into the season. When we actually did make it into the semifinals with the win over Mount Ida it felt very surreal. We felt we had really accomplished something and were ready to move on to the next game. It was a great feeling given the hard work we put in all season.

When Coach Capobianco gives you the day off, what are you doing?
If i’m not doing homework i’ll be at the gym. I have to get my exercise in whether i’m practicing or not. Maybe I’ll watch a movie too, or soccer videos on YouTube and hang out with my teammates. Our whole floor is mostly soccer guys.

What’s the best advice you’ve ever received and by whom?
(long pause) I watched this video from Eric Thomas (motivational speaker) and he said “pain is temporary”. Also , my dad would say to me in spanish “the lazy one works twice as hard”, which means if I’m lazy I have to work twice as hard to get something done.

What’s the last picture you took with your phone?
I took a picture of some notes. It was finals week.

If you could sit down to dinner with anyone, dead or alive, who would it be and why?
Albert Einstein. He’s known as one of the smartest guys of the last century and I’d want to pick his brain. Sportswise, though, it would be Ronaldinho. Watching him play is what got me into soccer.

If you could have a special power, what would it be?
Control an element like fire or water

If you could live in a TV show or movie, which would it be?
That 70’s Show

If you had a million dollars, what would you do with it?
I’d take me and my family to a Manchester United game, I don’t care how much it would cost. I’d also want to travel the world. The world has so much to offer. The remainder I’d donate to a cancer related charity.

All abilities aside, if you could play another sport at Regis what would it be?
I’m a shorter guy so I have to think about this. I’d have to say a libero in volleyball

What’s your go-to karaoke song?
Mr. Brightside by The Killers

If you could be any animal, what would you be?
An eagle.

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