Last fall, Lincoln-Way Central’s Flynn Meyer qualified for the state meet in diving.

In the winter, she also made it to the state, taking 18th place on vault and helping Lincoln-Way East’s co-op team — which also includes gymnasts from the other district schools — win its first state trophy with a third-place finish.

Can she make it 3-for-3 in state appearances? The junior goalkeeper will certainly do her best to go on another run this spring on the soccer field.

Talk about a hectic school year.

“I feel like it’s weird not to be busy,” Meyer said. “There’s like a weird, two-day period in between where I don’t know what to do and it’s just, like, awkward.

“I just love competing.”

And the Knights certainly enjoy having someone with Meyer’s mentality in the net. Just ask Lincoln-Way Central coach Sean Fahey.

“She’s a super-competitive person,” Fahey said. “That was evident from the beginning. How often do you see your goalie compete in every sprint and things like that in practice?

“She’s just super competitive, super likeable, a great teammate. There’s never a question about whether she’s focused or doing her best.”

Meyer was thrown into the fire in 2023, starting at goalkeeper as a freshman on a team with huge aspirations.

That year, the Knights went 18-2-2, losing just once in the regular season before being upset by Andrew in a sectional semifinal.

Lincoln-Way Central had a tougher regular season last spring but went a round deeper in the playoffs, finishing 11-6-3 with another loss to Andrew in a sectional final.

The Knights allowed just 15 goals all season and Meyer had 10 shutouts.

All that experience has Meyer feeling prepared to add to what’s already been a memorable junior year.

“It’s confidence,” she said. “My freshman year, I was very timid. I would not come out of the goal. I would stay right on my line. Even when they would pass back to me, I’d just bomb it up to nowhere at all just to get it out of there.

“But now my confidence is up and I’m comfortable. I’m excited to see where this year goes.”

Of course, having a strong back line helps. Senior Abby Sudkamp, who earned all-state honors last season and is headed to Loyola, leads the Knights’ defense.

Senior forward Madi Watt, an Eastern Illinois recruit, feels like the strength of Meyer and the team’s defensive unit takes the pressure off Lincoln-Way Central’s top scorers.

“I believe our defense can really carry us a long way this year,” Watt said.

Sudkamp and her fellow defenders are typically able to limit the number of shots Meyer sees, but they have no doubt she has their back any time she’s called upon.

“I’ve known Flynn forever and she’s always very trustworthy,” Sudkamp said. “I know I can count on her back there.”

Of course, it should be no surprise that Meyer is ready for the big moments. From fall to spring, she never leaves the spotlight.

“Coming off a beam routine at state gymnastics, that was a lot,” Meyer said. “I feel like any moment now is comfortable. The big moments feel smaller-ish. I know I can’t ever get ahead of myself.”

As far as Fahey is concerned, there’s no better person to have playing goalkeeper than an elite athlete who has been in all sorts of pressure situations.

“Some of that stuff she does requires the ultimate mental toughness,” Fahey said. “You have to perform with the utmost detail and precision, and if you don’t, you don’t get it back. Goalie is very similar. When your footwork is bad and you don’t get your fingertip to the ball to make the game-saving save, you have to live with that.

“She’s definitely been hardened mentally from being on those stages that she’s been on.”