Nov. 1, 2001

Stony Brook, N.Y. - Senior Jamie Gaither doesn't stay in one place very long.

For instance, when the Stony Brook men's soccer team takes the field, you can bet on one thing. From the moment the referee blows the whistle at midfield until the final buzzer sounds, the 5-8 midfielder is a blur, running back and forth with no signs of fatigue. In his two years as a Seawolf, Gaither has started every single game and played most of them to their entirety.

The soccer field isn't the only place Gaither is sometimes too quick to catch. Born in Fresno, Calif., the 22-year-old has moved around quite a bit. When he was eight, his father James was transferred to Dallas, Texas, where the family lived for two years. Then the Gaithers moved to Memphis, Tenn., where Jamie attended Germantown High School before heading to the University of Missouri-Kansas City for his freshman season. Unhappy with his limited role on the team, Gaither decided to give his hometown another try and transferred to Fresno State University for his sophomore year.

It was the same story at FSU as it was at UMKC, Gaither played only 30-45 minutes and rarely started.

"I didn't play as much as I wanted to play, and I guess I could have stuck it out since I was only a freshman and sophomore," Gaither says. "But I'm kind of stubborn."

When James Gaither's job with the IRS took him to Long Island during his son's sophomore year at FSU, Jamie's parents told him if he changed schools again, he would be moving closer to them.

That advice turned out to be very profitable for the Stony Brook men's soccer program.

From the moment he put on the Seawolves uniform, Gaither has made a difference. He didn't waste any time showing Stony Brook what he was all about, as it was his goal that led the Seawolves to a 1-0 upset at Boston College in last year's season opener. Since then, he has scored eight more goals, including four more gamewinners.

"I want to be the person who is always in the game and hopefully makes an impact," says the Seawolves' leading scorer. "I never want to step off the field. I just love to play the game."

As a junior, Gaither was part of a well-balanced Seawolves offense that helped SBU score twice as many goals as its opponents and compile a 12-4-2 record along the way.

But it has been this season that the senior has really begun to shine. With a depleted roster, including the loss of last year's leading scorer in just the second game of the season, Gaither has stepped up to score five goals and two assists, both team-highs, in 14 games. The Seawolves haven't quite enjoyed the same success as they had last year, when Stony Brook cracked the national rankings and shut out 10 of its opponents, but the soft-spoken Gaither has continued to go out and do his job the same way he has since Day One.

"It's always great to be recognized, and last year people were always coming up to us, asking us when our next game was and how proud the school was of the team," Gaither says. "I kind of miss that, but that's not why I play the game."

The team lost four seniors from last year's squad, in addition to NSCAA All-Region defender Jermaine Wright and key midfielder Hector Dillon. With the injuries piling up early on, the Seawolves became a completely different team.

"Our team last year was more mature and had more depth," Gaither says. "Physically, this season has taken a toll on the starters and the players that play a lot of minutes. It's stressful and it gets to you at times, especially at this point in the season."

Gaither may be slight at just 5-8 and 150 pounds, but he's no lightweight. After even the hardest of tackles, the senior bounces up and resumes running full-speed with no sign of pain or even hesitation.

"Even if I'm banged up, I try not to let my teammates or the opponent see that," says Gaither.

An unofficial team captain who was given a captain's band by teammate Dan Ferrin for the remainder of the season, Gaither has been christened "Daddy" by his teammates. The nickname comes from a character in the movie Swingers who serves as a person everyone else looks up to.

"I don't really try to be a leader, I guess it's just a natural thing," Gaither says. "I'm just trying to enjoy this season for what it's worth since it's my last year. I don't really like to tell people what to do, so I'm more of a leader by example than a vocal leader."

Gaither closed out his final two home games in appropriate fashion last weekend, leading the Seawolves to a 1-0 upset of archrival Hofstra and a 2-1 overtime win against Drexel on Senior Day to keep Stony Brook's America East Conference playoff hopes alive. His gamewinners in back-to-back games, games that were must-wins for SBU to continue its quest for the postseason, earned him Athlete of the Week honors.

But Gaither denies that he did anything impressive or special.

"I was just in the right place at the right time," he says.

That's something he has done time and again this season. Gaither's gamewinners have led Stony Brook to four of its six victories.

The Seawolves head into this weekend with a renewed belief in themselves and their ability to do what they had envisioned at the beginning of the season--becoming one of the six teams eligibile to compete in the America East Conference championship. Vermont, the preseason favorite to win the title, and Hartford, a tournament lock as league runner-up, stand in the way of Stony Brook's goal.

"We have to come ready to play for the full 90 (minutes)," Gaither says. "It's going to be a battle. We haven't blown out any teams this year, so we're used to playing close games. One mistake can cost us, so we just have to go out and play hard. Every player needs to do that."

With Gaither leading the way, the Seawolves just might pull off what seemed impossible a couple of weeks ago, when SBU was 1-5-1 in conference play and ninth in the standings.

One thing you won't have to wonder about is where Jamie Gaither will be as Stony Brook strives to win out and make the playoffs. He'll be racing full-speed all over the field, doing his best to help put away another win for the Seawolves.