Neuqua Valley’s Andrew Tedrow understands the power of positivity.

The senior midfielder has been both the beneficiary and the source of good vibes during his three-year varsity career.

It is one of the main reasons Tedrow was chosen by his peers to be one of Neuqua Valley’s captains alongside senior goalkeeper Nick Varrone and senior midfielder Ege Tunar.

“I have very good parents that raised me to be a leader and to make sure everyone around you is OK,” Tedrow said. “I’ve come to naturally have a really big heart, and I love looking out for everybody else.”

That’s a quality appreciated by younger teammates like sophomore defender Wesley Karubas.

“He’s definitely a good guy to look up to,” Karubas said. “He really sets an example (of how to) play with passion and play the game how it’s supposed to be played.

“It just shows me what I can become as a senior. I’m a captain on my club team, and it really shows how I can bring it to the high school and help everybody out.”

Tedrow’s captaincy is the crowning achievement of his soccer career.

“Ever since I was little, being a captain of a high school soccer team was always a dream of mine,” he said. “It’s truly an honor. This captain’s band means more to me than anything. I love coming out here each and every day, leading these guys into battle, picking them up when they put their heads down, celebrating with them when they score. I’m very fortunate.”

Neuqua Valley coach Arnoldo Gonzalez said the Wildcats (6-5-2) are fortunate to have Tedrow as a leader.

“Sometimes players need that little push,” Gonzalez said. “In practice, everyone knows what they need to do, but we all know that if we’re zoned out, we need someone yelling at us, and Andy does that for us. But he’s so positive that even if you’re having a bad day, he’ll make you have a good day.”

The Wildcats have had plenty of ups and downs this season, but Tedrow has been a rock. His physical skills are just as important as his intangibles, as he demonstrated during a 2-2 tie with host Downers Grove South on Saturday.

Tedrow scored Neuqua Valley’s first goal on a penalty kick. Sophomore defender Alex Serra scored the second — the first of his career — when he headed in Tedrow’s 40-yard free kick.

“Defensively, he’s always at the right place at the right time, and then on the offensive end of things, his vision has grown tremendously,” Gonzalez said of Tedrow. “He knows when to send that through ball or that diagonal.”

That knowledge comes from years of practice and performance. Tedrow’s parents, Jason and Jennifer, were high school athletes in Michigan. Neither played soccer, but they encouraged him to try all sorts of sports, and soccer stuck.

“I fell in love with the game at such a young age, and I love to get better, so I’d go to the field near my house, kick the ball against some bricks,” Tedrow said. “I would do everything in my power to try to get better each and every day.”

Tedrow, who said he’s 5 feet, 6 inches tall “on a good day,” has done it despite often playing against older kids and never being the biggest player on the field.

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“I love to run, so I try to be everywhere,” he said. “I’m not that big of a guy, so I try to use my speed to my advantage. I always go up for every ball even if it’s 2 feet away from me. I try to do everything I can with what I’ve got.”

Tedrow didn’t get his leadership skills out of thin air. He credits former teammate Jack Georgi, who plays at Carthage, for being a mentor.

“He would always drive me to and from practices,” Tedrow said. “He walked me through the pathway of how I should do things and what it should look like to be captain.

“As a sophomore, I was super nervous, and he would always reassure me. He was like my big brother that I never had.”

Tedrow is cherishing every minute of being Neuqua Valley’s big brother. He won’t play soccer in college.

“At the end of the day, whatever our record is, I just want to enjoy myself,” he said. “I want to enjoy every moment I have with my team — all the ups, all the downs and all the team bonding — because this stuff doesn’t last forever.”

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