By D.J. Glazer
Bayside’s D.J. Glazer, the city’s leading goal scorer last season, takes us inside her world as one of the area’s top girls’ soccer players in her exclusive bi-weekly diary for timesledger.com. She and the Commodores will look to build off their PSAL Class A semifinals berth last season and challenge for a city title.
Hi! My name is Danielle Jessica Glazer, but most people call me “D.J.” for short. Throughout the years many people have asked me where my nickname came from. During a game, when I first began to play soccer, there were four Danielles and two Danielas on the field at the same time.
In order to differentiate us, my coach’s wife decided to come up with nicknames. She noticed that on my ball there were the initials DJG. She asked what the “J” was for and I told her “Jessica.” Instantly, she said “DJ” and ever since then the name has stuck.
I am a senior forward/midfielder at Bayside, but a defender for my club team the Massapequa Elite. I’ve also been selected for the Olympic Development Program state team for six years, along with making the Rider Cup Team every year of my eligibility. On top of that, I have attended each regional camp where I have had the experience of making the pool list, which allowed me to play with some of the best players in the region.
I began high school at St. Francis Prep. Unfortunately, the school wasn’t the right fit for me and I decided to transfer. I had 59 goals last year, my first full season at Bayside because of transferring and injuries. We won our division and made it all the way to the semifinals against Bronx Science before losing.
This past week we played two games. We played Thomas Edison and won 8-0 and I had five goals. Our second game was against Townsend Harris and we won 5-1 and I score five more times to push our record to 2-1 this season.
While I am focused on my season, I am also looking forward to my soccer future. Earning the opportunity to play Division I soccer has been a lifelong dream of mine. With the help of my coaches, that dream is finally coming true. Ever since my freshmen year I have been searching for the perfect college to attend.
Traveling to tournaments in Las Vegas, Florida, North Carolina, Washington, New Jersey and Maryland has given me the opportunity to be seen by many college coaches. Although I haven’t made my final decision yet, my choices have been narrowed down and I will make my final decision after I make my official visits at the end of September.
