McPHERSON, Kan. – Elyria Christian School student and McPherson High School Boys Soccer standout athlete Gabe Standfast competed in the 2025 Keeper Wars National Championships in Orlando, Fla., placing third nationally in his age group.
Standfast, who will be a senior in the 2025-26 school year, was one of hundreds of young athletes participating in the Keeper Wars Championship, a competition of the best student-athlete goalkeepers from around the country. Standfast was a part of the 2008 Boys Premier group. The championships took place July 26-27.
The Keeper Wars is a game for goalkeepers that allows them to show all of their skills. Two keepers play one-on-one matchups against each other in fields as big as 12×22 yards, playing in two halves of three minutes each. A full slate of rules can be found by CLICKING HERE.
The event began with pool play Saturday as Standfast played in six matchups. Out of the six matchups, Standfast won four of them, putting him in fifth out of the 11 competitors in the pool.
Bracket play followed Sunday, where Standfast began early in the day but earned the victory 9-8. He fell 7-6 in the next match, but had another shot in the consolation bracket. He’d win the next two matchups 11-4 and 10-6, punching his ticket to the semifinal. He fell 11-8 in the consolation side, finishing him in third place overall.
Standfast finished the fall 2024 season with McPherson earning second-team All-AVCTL III-IV and All-State Honorable Mention honors as a goalkeeper. The Bullpups finished 9-8-1 on the season, falling in Regionals to Wichita-Trinity Academy.
KSHSAA sanctioned practices for fall sports, including boys soccer, begins Monday, Aug. 18. McPherson’s first games of the 2025 season will be in the Maize South Invitational Sept. 9, 11, and 13.
