April 6, 2004
SAN DIEGO - San Diego State men's soccer coach Lev Kirshner has announced the signings seven recruits for the upcoming 2004 season. The seven-member class consists of two junior college transfers, and five prep standouts, including three from California and four from Arizona.
"We are excited to bring in another class with a very high level of talent," said Kirshner. "We feel this class is in line with the last two excellent recruiting years we have had, and will help lead us to continued success on the field."
The two junior college transfers, Ryan Reott and Eric Santiago, will provide an immediate impact to the squad.
"Ryan and Eric have a tremendous amount of championship experience at the JC level and we are looking for them to bring that winning attitude with them to our program," Kirsher said. "On the field, both are extremely dangerous off the dribble and can give quality service from the outside."
Reott, a left-sided player who can play defender or midfield, comes to SDSU from Irvine Valley College, where he recently earned most valuable player honors in leading IVC to the 2003 California Junior College Championship. Reott recorded five assists and a goal during the championship run, and also led the state in assists during the year, recording 18 in 24 games. Prior to going to IVC, Reott played at El Dorado High School and club for the Slammers.
Santiago, originally from Las Vegas, continues the pipeline for SDSU from junior college power Yavapai in Phoenix. Santiago helped lead Yavapai to a national championship in 2002 as he was named the most valuable player of the championship team, and also earned all-region and all-conference honors.
Kirshner also added a pair of goalkeepers, Ryan Bowie and Greg Larson, which will continue the line of great players SDSU has produced at the position as SDSU has earned postseason conference honors for goalkeeping each of the last four years.
"We put a major focus on goalkeeping this season after losing our starting keeper from last year and we are proud to have gotten one of the top keepers from both Arizona and northern California," Kirshner said.
Bowie is from Chandler, Ariz. and was a four-year starter at Mountain Pointe High School, where he holds career records in games started (67), goals against average (1.03), shutouts (27), and wins (47). Bowie is a two time all-central region selection, and was selected to the Arizona all-state team his senior year. Bowie also plays for the Arizona Futbol Club (AZFC), and has been a member of Arizona's ODP State Team.
Larson is from Sunnyvale, Calif. where he played for Fremont High School, as well as for the Palo Alto Crew. Larson was a first-team all-league selection and voted DeAnza League most valuable player as well as goalkeeper of the year. Larson will provide great leadership to the Aztecs as illustrated by captaining the Crew for five years, as well as his high school for three years.
Highlighting the list of prep players in the field is Freddy MacDonald, a 6-2 center-back from Phoenix. MacDonald was an all-region and all-state selection the last two seasons at Mountain Point HS. In addition, 2003-04 saw MacDonald earn Arizona central region player of the year honors, as well as being selected to the prestigious all-Arizona team and being a finalist for Arizona player of the year.
Eric Turner is a versatile player from Tempe, Ariz. Turner played at Corona Del Sol High School earning all-region honors three times, and was also named to the 2003 all-state team. Turner is another member of AZFC, where his character and ability were awarded in 2003, as he was voted the squad's most valuable player.
Nick Collins is a strong, technical midfielder from Paso Robles, Calif. Collins prepped at Paso Robles High School where he received all-conference honors. Nick plays club for one of the top teams in the nation, the Hotspurs United out of San Diego.
The incoming recruiting class will be asked to step in and make an immediate impact in the 2004 season as SDSU faces some of the top teams in the nation including 2002 national champion UCLA in a preseason exhibition and perennial NCAA tournament teams UC Santa Barbara and California.