On July 31, 2016, Konrad Plewa’s life changed. A former USL Cup champion and hometown hero, Konrad Plewa’s perspective on not only soccer, but life helped pave a professional path to Utah that most professional athletes in their mid-20s couldn’t fathom travelling.
Growing up in the New York Red Bulls Academy and after making an impression on the organization, Plewa signed for the club’s United Soccer League affiliate New York Red Bulls II before the 2015 season following a successful college career at Seton Hall University. After his first season in the Empire State that saw Plewa make 21 starts and score three goals, 2016 would be the year that shaped the defender’s life forever.
In July 2016, just a day after NYRB II fell to the Richmond Kickers 2-1 in a regular-season match, Plewa suffered a stroke at his home in New York.
Being a professional athlete at 24 years old and having a stroke is something that Plewa never thought could or would happen to him, but the event and the situation that followed became something that the 6’3” centerback came to appreciate because of the perspective he gained.
“Being young and being in the prime of your life and have this happen, it’s contrary to what you’d expect from a young athlete that is in very good shape,” Plewa explained. “I felt impervious because I was an athlete who treats himself right. To be playing one day and in the hospital the next made me realize that you can’t take anything for granted and to just enjoy everything that I do.”
After making it to the USL Cup Playoffs that year, NYRB II played its way to the Eastern Conference semifinal against in-state rival Rochester Rhinos for a chance to book its place in the conference final in a game that needed 120 minutes and eventually penalties to decide a winner. After four rounds of penalties, it was Plewa to kick fifth in the shootout knowing that if he scores, he would send his team to USL Cup – a final NYRB II would host.
“To score the winning penalty after the year that I had gone through, to have my teammates and all my family and friends there to see that, it was a really special moment,” Plewa recalled.
Plewa’s penalty never seemed in doubt as he struck the ball straight down the middle, clipping the underside of the crossbar on the way in to send New York to the conference final. Helping his team and his city to a historic year in 2016, Plewa and the Red Bulls went on to claim the 2016 USL Cup in just the team’s second year, when it handily toppled Swope Park Rangers 5-1 in front of its own fans at Red Bull Arena. Plewa finished the season having played in 27 games, making 17 starts, all after suffering a stroke mid-season. Plewa currently owns the record for the most minutes played in a Red Bulls II jersey with 3,371.
A new challenge approached Plewa in 2017 after the championship season in New York as Saint Louis FC courted his services as a tall, dominant defender on the back line. After a 2017 season that saw STLFC miss the playoffs, Plewa sought a new challenge that was closer to the west coast.
“My time in Saint Louis was important for me as a player as I grew as a professional,” Plewa explained. “After the season concluded in Saint Louis I decided to move on from there looking for a new challenge.”
The Real Monarchs were fresh off winning the USL Regular Season Championship and winning the first trophy in club history when Plewa decided to make the move away from Missouri, something that made the opportunity to play in Utah more enticing. As someone who enjoys skiing, Plewa visited Utah to ski in Park City and had long been wishing to return to the Beehive State. Having recently earned his first start on one of the stingiest back lines in the USL, Plewa seems to have settled nicely in Utah.
“I had always heard really great things about the Monarchs, especially after the 2017 season they had winning the regular season,” Plewa said. “Pair the winning culture that the Monarchs have with the beautiful scenery and facilities the club has invested in, the Monarchs were an obvious choice for me looking for a new challenge.”
