After transferring to Monmouth in 2013, Dom Sarle put together one of the best all-around seasons in program history in 2014. He led the team with six goals and five assists, paving the way to a MAAC Championship and NCAA Tournament appearance. Sarle's accolades following the season included All-MAAC First Team, NSCAA All-Northeast Region Second Team, NSCAA Scholar All-America Third Team, Team MVP, and MAAC All-Academic Team. He also finished tied for the league lead in game-winning goals with four.
What have you been up to since graduating from Monmouth?
I became a professional poker player. I knew I loved poker since I was 15 years old, even while playing for the U-17 National Team and living in residency where I ate, breathed, and lived soccer. I would find time to play poker at least a few hours a day. I knew right away I had potential to be very good and just glad I never let the stigma of poker as a job or a lot of people not quite understanding stop me from getting to the point I am today.
I have also coached youth soccer on Long Island. I really enjoy coaching, and being able to help a player with a lot of raw talent is the best part of the job. To help a player go from good to great is an awesome process to watch. A coach's job is not to make a team or a player great. They must decide to do that themselves. The great coaches can get the most out of their players by understanding what drives them and holding the team or player accountable daily.
What is your fondest memory at Monmouth?
Winning a MAAC Championship. That was one of my fondest memories of my entire career. It was awesome being part of a group of guys who only focused on winning and nothing else. Everyone bought into the goal and sacrificed anything necessary to achieve it.
If you could travel anywhere in the world where would you go and why?
Although I am getting the option of anywhere in the world, I'll go with Hawaii. I have been lucky enough to travel to most of the countries I have wanted to visit but have never made it to Hawaii and have always wanted to go.
If you could master one skill right now that you don't have, what would it be?
Speaking another language. As difficult as it is, if you are willing to put time into something that can be extremely useful in life, this can be beneficial in a lot of different circumstances.
If you could give advice to a current Monmouth player, what would it be?
Be extremely coachable and leave any ego you had from high school or any previous successful season behind you. Do whatever you can to make those around you better, which usually means buying into whatever it is that gives the team the best chance of winning. I think as an 18-to-22 year old, it is a difficult thing to do. Your thought process is usually what can I do personally to help the team, but it should be what does the team need me to do to give us the best chance at success. It might be something you are uncomfortable doing or not used to, but understanding that the coaching staff has seen tons of players and let them use you in a way they think is best. Most of all, respect the game. Whether you are a walk on, a full-scholarship player, a freshman, a senior, or a 24-year-old double transfer. It is easy to take playing a D-1 sport for granted and my main advice would be, DON'T. Enjoy every day, enjoy competing, enjoy two-a-days even when its 90 degrees in August. It is a privilege to be able to play at Monmouth and showing up every day and competing to the best of your abilities should be the standard.
How did your time at Monmouth prepare you for life after graduation?
Two of the main things were doing everything the right way and keeping an open mind in the process. Coach McCourt and Coach MacDonald represent Monmouth in a great way by running the soccer team like this. They do not cut corners or allow anybody to be above the team or the university. They are fair with their expectations and only ask that you put in the work. Just like academics, if you put in the effort you did well, there was no faking it to get by. While doing this, approach everything you do as if you are a beginner regardless of your experience. It will maximize your potential and allow you to constantly work with more experienced people than yourself.
Between your former teammates and coaches, who has had the most impact on your life?
Well, this might not be the typical answer, but it is the truth so I'm going with the entire Monmouth team and coaching staff. I played at two D-I colleges before Monmouth, which both had teammates and coaches that made a big impact on me. I played on a National Team with 40 players and a coaching staff of seven before entering college, plenty of which I learned a lot from. I learned more about myself and life in my two years at Monmouth than all the other years combined. The most important lessons being leadership, accountability, and always keeping an open mind. No team, game, or anything you decide to do in life will be the exact same daily. Thinking you have arrived or know everything about anything is dangerous. The coaches at Monmouth understood this. When holding the senior captains just as accountable as the redshirt freshmen, it sends a message to the team (especially the younger guys) that this is how we operate. It creates a better atmosphere as a whole and allows an ever-changing college team to have an identity and an understanding of what is expected every year.
Final thoughts on success:
Always look to make others look good. I always talk to younger players and give them the starting 11 analogy. Every D-I college coach understands that you are never winning anything significant with your starting 11. Sounds cliché but it is the truth. It is awesome to have a great starting 11 on opening night but if you look out and think, 'wow we have a great chance to go far this year because of these 11 guys,' you are already doomed. The year I had to sit out and only train, I got to see this firsthand. You need everyone on the team to be hungry and stay ready which is ridiculously hard, especially for an 17 or 18-year-old kid who was the star of their high school team and has not played a minute halfway through the season. This is where having good leadership is important. It starts with the coaching staff, but they instill into the players. I think as a senior group, we did a good job of pushing the underclassmen to continue to get better daily while giving them confidence that their number would be called at some point. In my opinion, making those around you better always leads to the greatest possible success.
