Gator men's soccer team captain and goalkeeper, Gabe Hall, the 6-1 180-pound fourth-year marketing major arrived on the field for pregame warm-ups. Hall drew wide-eyed stares from coaches and teammates as he demanded hard work and dedication from everyone on the team.

Hall arrived at SF State two years ago, after transferring from the University of Indianapolis.

“I decided to come here because I wanted to leave Indiana, looking for a new start. I had a few offers but after talking with coach and my parents, we decided that San Francisco State fitted what I was looking for both academically and sports,’’ Hall said.

Hall had a few lessons to learn about the workload of managing school and soccer.

“When I first started school, I didn’t adapt. My first two years of school had gotten to me; now that I’m getting older and mature I know how to balance my schoolwork and soccer better,” Hall said.

He did. Hall became more focused and determined. He took more responsibility for his actions. He leads by example, working hard in practice and in the classroom, according to his teammates and coach.

“Gabe will make a bigger impact this season. With great hands, superb body control and sizzling speed, he adds firepower to our team,’’ coach Joe Hunter said.

“Gabe needed to be a better leader when we’re going through tough times, people are looking up to him to provide leadership and so far he had stepped up and made good on his promise,’’ said Hunter.

“He knows how to keep the team together by his actions and that makes a great leader in the classroom and on the soccer field,’’ said teammate, midfielder, Ram Ananda.