Utah junior forward Shauna Gurr-Bingham is one of the premiere soccer players at the University of Utah. She is a potent athlete with great ability and a powerful kick.
But she gets overshadowed. Many teams focus on Amy Kofoed or Katie Tate when they play Utah. That can turn out to be a major error.
Gurr-Bingham has scored several crucial goals this year to help the Utes to victories. So what’s behind the team captain, Shauna Gurr-Bingham?
Like many collegiate athletes, she got her start at a young age. She began thinking of playing collegiate soccer as a senior at Woods Cross High School in Woods Cross, Utah. She was recruited by high caliber schools, including Arizona State, BYU, Arizona, as well as Ivy League schools.
But Gurr-Bingham had no interest in going back East. She stayed in Utah to be close to home, and because she likes the Utah program, the coaches and school.
She is a player who knows the game. She is able to read other players and know what to do in certain situations and how plays will develop.
“I like to pass the ball a lot and makes things happen,” she said. Gurr-Bingham said she would pass up a goal for an assist.
As a sophomore, Gurr-Bingham broke the Ute record for assists in one season with 12. This year, she is tied for second with four. Only Amy Kofoed has more.
However, her biggest thrill is still scoring. She wants to score to help her team to victory.
She scored the only two goals against New Mexico this year, giving the Utes a much needed win. She scored the first goal of the game against Air Force, which turned out to be a game winner.
She also was a second team All Mountain West Conference player last year and was voted Utah’s MVP by her teammates. This year, she has done little to disappoint teammates or fans. She has scored seven goals already, two more than last year.
The desire to excel keeps Gurr Bingham motivated.
“A couple of years down the road I will look back and know I’ve done my best. Every game, I just try to play my best.” she said.
“Shauna has really become a force for us up top this year,” said Ute coach Amy Winslow. “She works very hard on and off the ball, offensively and defensively.”
Gurr-Bingham is not without trials. Coming into college, she tore her anterior cruciate ligament in the summer following her senior year at Woods Cross High. She was required to have surgery to repair the damage to the knee, took a medical redshirt and sat out her freshman year. She had never skipped a season before.
“I didn’t know what was going to happen, because I wasn’t planning on getting hurt,” she said.
Despite being able to mesh with the team as a freshman and get experience, she benefitted by watching the team perform. She watched the Winslows’ coaching style and Utah’s soccer style.
“That was good for me to analyze,” she said.
Gurr-Bingham considers her return to soccer after her injury her greatest sports accomplishment.
Individually, she is a tremendous player, but how does this carry over to her leadership abilities?
“She doesn’t ask her teammates to do anything she wouldn’t do,” Winslow said.
“She has taken the responsibility of being a captain, and not just accepted it, but embraced it,” said Ute assistant coach Jim Winslow.
Gurr-Bingham constantly encourages players on the team to keep in the game mentally. When a team will get rough and cheap, Gurr-Bingham likes to help the Utes stay at Utah’s level and not drop to the level of other teams.
She is a positive leader. When a teammate makes an error, she doesn’t scold the player.
“You don’t get down on them, you just have to bring them up. Otherwise, it turns into a negative problem,” she said. “Overall, I just try to be positive. Being positive helps your team.”
She insists being a team captain doesn’t change her behavior. It isn’t much of a burden for her.
“Other than the name, I don’t think anything changes. I have to obey certain rules and follow certain guidelines, but other than that, I don’t think having the title makes me act in a different way.”
Gurr-Bingham hasn’t ruled out trying to compete professionally after the season is over, but that isn’t the only thing she is trying to get out of soccer. She enjoys the team and the experiences they have together. She enjoys being able to travel with her friends. She is grateful for the education she is getting as well.
Winning is one of this team captain’s main goals. She wants her team to perform to the best of their ability to get the victory.
However, she doesn’t allow winning at all costs to interfere with her diversion.
“I always say before the games, let’s just have fun and play hard.”
“She’s one of the best soccer players I’ve played with,” said Alli Cerruti, teammate and close friend. “She’s smart, she’s got speed and she makes good decisions with the ball. It’s been a pleasure to play with her.”
“She has really developed a passion for playing and has gotten better and better every year,” said Jim Winslow. “Shauna’s best days are still to come.”
Just imagine if Gurr-Bingham continues to improve. The professional ranks may soon be calling.
Gurr-Bingham’s teammates all think positively of her as a player and their captain.
“She is one of the most inspiring players on our team,” said Katie Tate. “She is a great captain, and everything she says pumps us up. She’s a needed player out there on the field, too.”
“Her personality is so funny, and she always makes everyone laugh,” said Lisa Vasconcellos. “When we’re in times of stress, on or off the field, she makes everyone laugh and be relaxed.”
Gurr-Bingham is also a unique player, in the sense she is the only player on the Utah soccer team who is married. She was married last summer to Brook Bingham.
However, she says that being married doesn’t make her different in her play.
“I don’t feel weird. It’s the same,” she said.
Gurr-Bingham is a communication major, but the degree could take her anywhere.
“Always have fun in life. Stay positive. Get the best out of every day, because you never know when that day is going to be your last,” she said.
Those are Shauna Gurr Bingham’s main goals in life. They carry over into her work on the soccer field, but it shows what kind of person she is. A great player. A team leader.