You could say senior Dalton Gaumer is known for his excellence on the SJC soccer field. Gaumer’s accolades include: All-American defender, three-time Tournament Player, three-time Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) championship title holder, All-Conference First Team, two-time Defensive Player of the Year, and selected to play on the New England Senior All-Star Team. Dalton leveraged his athletic success into a series of internships and work experiences that allow him to pursue his passion for business and sports management.
From a small town in Corona, California, Gaumer chose Saint Joseph’s as his new home.
“I chose Saint Joseph’s because I wanted to play collegiate soccer while furthering my education. When I came to campus on my official visit, it felt like a place I could call home for the next four years. I met some great people on this trip and I knew if I was going to leave California, this was the place to be.”
Gaumer described why he feels he made a good choice. The college has “millions of mentors, everyone you meet.” When it came down to graduating on time after switching majors he turned to professor John Zerrillo who advised him. “Zerrillo helped out a lot because I switched (majors) I had a lot of catching up to do; I had to take five courses every semester just to get caught up. He helped with that process just so I could graduate in four years. He was a big mentor in my school process.”
Dalton has taken advantage of several internships to prepare for his career. He started out in a customer service position with the Portland Sea Dogs, a minor league baseball team based out of Maine. Here is where he learned to like sales. This included game day ticket sales and sending out season-ticket-holder packets, along with will call tickets and make-up dates. “I liked the overall atmosphere of sales in a sporting organization,” said Gaumer. “Everyone that came to the games had a smile on their face and speaking to them on a weekly basis was amazing. You create connections with people that live within the area. Another perk of the job included seeing the Boston Red Sox World Series trophies.”
Dalton’s scored another internship opportunity with Seacoast United, one of the most successful athletic organizations in the region. Their mission focuses on the advancement and the physical and social wellbeing of kids and adults through competitive soccer (and now also youth field hockey, baseball, and softball teams). Gaumer’s internship provided hands on experience with management. He set up everything from the water jugs and scoreboard to the ticket booth and their promotional banner. At the end of games he could also be assigned tasks such as sending scores and stats and writing the recaps.
As a Seacoast intern, Dalton tackled business partner development for a new facility being planned for Falmouth, Maine. “I created a list of potential partners using Seacoast United’s mission statement as well as the potential company’s mission statement. This way I could create a connection with them when it was time to reach out and have a better chance of partnering with them,” explained Dalton.
Along with Dalton’s internships he also works as an Intramural supervisor on the Saint Joseph’s College campus. “I applied the second semester of freshman year and submitted an application and resume and had an in-person interview.” Starting as a ref, Gaumer soon learned the ropes as a supervisor. The supervisor position includes promoting each sport – for example: flag football, water volleyball, and softball – to the campus, then using a round robin generator with the participating teams, reviewing rules before every contest, recording the scores daily, scheduling teams, working with security to ensure access to playing spaces, and hosting pop-up tournaments. Gaumer also controls the conversation about what sports should be added or dropped after looking at the participation from that season. All things that grew and continue to grow Dalton’s experience and knowledge as he looks to graduation.
Overall, senior Dalton Gaumer has achieved excellence on the Saint Joseph’s College campus. When asked how being on a successful team affected him as a student his reply was, “It has brought me overall happiness. The small school drew large crowds. I started to see how it affected the community. For example – when I was coaching younger kids at Seacoast their parents came up to me and told me, ‘You had a nice game the other night.’ The following was unbelievable.” Looking ahead, Dalton hopes to land a sales position and is considering Seacoast United options while playing semi-pro soccer in the New England region.
