Naperville Central senior goalkeeper Dylan Scott knows concentration is one of the keys to his craft.

Let your mind wander for an instant, and you could be picking the ball out of the back of the net.

“Last year, I was a little bit all over the place, especially at practices,” Scott said. “It was my fault. I didn’t really try hard.

“But this year, I’m a lot more focused. Knowing it was my last year, I really wanted to prove to coach and myself that I can focus when I need to.”

Naperville Central coach Troy Adams said Scott has done exactly that.

“He’s gotten much more focused,” Adams said. “That’s the biggest thing. Dylan is Dylan. Goalkeepers are always a little crazy. It’s just the nature of the position, but he’s been able to channel it a little bit better this year.”

Scott channeled his best self on Tuesday, making several huge plays as the host Redhawks tied Naperville North 1-1 in double overtime in a key DuPage Valley Conference game at Memorial Stadium.

Two of the saves came on second-half breakaways against star junior forwards Jaxon Stokes and Noah Radeke, who have combined for 32 goals. Scott rushed off his line and knocked away a point-blank shot from Stokes with 5:10 remaining. Two minutes later, Radeke raced in alone from the left, but Scott used a slide tackle to deflect the ball over the end line.

“When I saw them get in front of the last defender, I was just waiting for them to take that one touch that was a little too big, and as soon as they take that touch, there is no hesitation coming off the line,” Scott said. “I was just trying to get any little bit on that ball.”

The defending Class 3A state champion Redhawks (5-3-3, 2-0-1) had taken a 1-0 lead on sophomore midfielder Eli Jarrell’s penalty kick with 24 seconds left in the first half. The Huskies (9-1-1, 2-0-1) tied it when senior midfielder Hindo Allie scored on a rebound at the 32:05 mark of the second half and controlled the rest of regulation.

But the play of Scott boosted his teammates.

“He’s done an amazing job so far this season,” Naperville Central senior defender Patrick Bohan said. “There’s no way we would have (tied) that game without him. He made countless amazing saves.”

And Scott made some plays that weren’t technically saves. Scott again came out of the net to punch a ball out of danger with 1:30 left in the second overtime, getting knocked to the ground in a three-way collision with a teammate and a Naperville North player.

“We watched him put his body on the line,” Bohan said. “When you watch your goalie put his body on the line, it kind of motivates you to want to work harder and put your body on the line as well.”

Though it wasn’t a win, the result allowed the Redhawks to remain in contention for at least a share of the DVC title and helped them ease the memory of a 5-0 loss to the Huskies in the Best of the West Tournament final.

“Hearing everybody in the stands and everybody around me say stuff, it feels pretty good,” Scott said. “Because last time we played them, we didn’t do too well.”

Scott and his backup, junior Connor Waite, have been continuing a tradition at Naperville Central, as both have older brothers who were goalkeepers for the Redhawks. Scott’s brother, Dean, split time two years ago with Austin Waite.

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Dylan Scott and Austin Waite split time last season. Waite was the starter, but Scott played the second half of a 1-0 win against Romeoville in the Class 3A state championship game.

The Scotts’ father, Tom, was a goalkeeper in high school and played in adult leagues until recently.

“It was really nice because my dad could train me and my brother growing up,” Dylan Scott said. “So it kind of made us a lot closer.”

Dylan Scott’s play allowed the Redhawks to come much closer to beating the Huskies, who had been averaging 4.3 goals. His performance drew praise from Naperville North coach Jim Konrad.

“Central has had a great tradition of goalkeepers over the years, and he’s definitely continued it,” Konrad said. “I thought he was fantastic tonight, and I also know he’s a wonderful young man as well. You can tell he plays with class.

“As I always say, we always want to win, but when a kid plays well and he’s also a Naperville kid, you want to tip your hat to him.”

Matt Le Cren is a freelance reporter for the Naperville Sun.