Dike sets new state record and family mark
Daryl Dike noticed the passes coming his way a lot more than usual.
In a mid-season game against Choctaw, Dike said teammates were feeding him the ball early and often, putting him in position to put in the back of net.
Over and over and over again.
“It was crazy,” said Dike, a senior forward for Edmond North. “After I scored the first couple I realized, oh they want me to get this record tonight.”
Dike finished the game against Choctaw with seven total goals, a double hat trick of sorts, that not only won Edmond North the game, but launched Dike into the record books.
The seven goals pushed him to 68 for his career, breaking the Oklahoma state record.
“It was one of the moments where I just couldn’t believe it,” said Dike, who signed to play at the University of Virginia next season. “To think where I was after my freshman season to now, it felt surreal.”
Dike scored 19 goals as a season — and finished with 71 for his varsity career — despite missing nearly a quarter of the year with an injury. For his play, Dike has been named The Oklahoman’s Boys Soccer Player of the Year.
Dike said one of the more satisfying parts of his senior year was breaking that record. Ever since he began playing varsity soccer at Edmond North, Dike has been known as the little brother.
Dike's older brother, Bright, and sister, Courtney, went on to play soccer at Notre Dame and Oklahoma State respectively and both have competed for the Nigerian national team.
But this year, while leading Edmond North to the state playoff semifinals, Dike said it felt like his time and team.
“This was my last hurrah,” Dike said. “We wanted to play every game to the fullest. I’m competitive and I tell my brother that I’m better than him or that I’m going to be better than him.”
Dike said it was that family legacy that drove him toward the record.
“I use the pressure to motivate me,” Dike said. “They all give me pointers and they have all been there before, so I had a ton of help getting there from everybody.”