July 12, 2016
SAN DIEGO -
M. Soccer Welcomes Eight for 2016
San Diego State men's soccer head coach Lev Kirshner has announced the signing of three student-athletes to his talented 2016 class. DJ Villegas, AJ Vergara and Alon Grod will join the Aztecs for the 2016 season.
"We are thrilled to add these three extremely talented and experienced student-athletes to our team for the upcoming season," Kirshner said. "We feel that they complete one of our strongest teams in recent memory and are excited for what they will bring to the table."
The trio adds to an already exceptional 2016 class, which now includes three National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Americans, five student-athletes with national team experience and two transfers boasting all-conference honors.
ALON GROD
FR| MF | 6-2 | 166 | Rishon Lezion, Israel | Makif Het | Hapoel Rishon Lezion
BEFORE SAN DIEGO STATE
Played three seasons with Hapoel Rishon Lezion, which plays in Israel's second football division ... Logged 568 minutes in 10 regular season matches in 2015-16, making five starts and logging full time three times ... Played full time in the Israel State Cup match against Maccabi Tel Aviv, which qualified for the UEFA Champions League group stage in 2015-16 ... Career-high 23 appearances in 23 matches came during the 2014-15 campaign ... Earned 10 starting assignments that season, playing full time in five matches.
AJ VERGARA
FR| MF | 5-3 | 125 | Long Beach, Calif. | California Connections Academy | LA Galaxy USSDA
BEFORE SAN DIEGO STATE
Played alongside fellow incoming freshman Christian Onalfo at LA Galaxy USSDA ... LA Galaxy U-17/U-18 finished the 2015-16 campaign ranked No. 17 nationally among club soccer teams ... Started 35 of 39 contests for LA Galaxy U-17/18 in 2015-16, scoring a pair of goals ... Called into the U-14, U-15, U-17 and U-18 U.S. Men's National Team camps ... Top Drawer Soccer four-star recruit ... Ranked No. 22 among 2016 recruits by College Soccer News.
DJ VILLEGAS
RS-FR| F | 5-6 | 145 | Sacramento, Calif. | Da Vinci Charter / UCLA | De Anza Force
BEFORE SAN DIEGO STATE
Redshirted his freshman year at UCLA ... Four-year letterwinner at Davis (Calif.) High School ... Four-star recruit ranked No. 22 overall and eighth among forwards by Top Drawer Soccer ... No. 19-ranked recruit by College Soccer News ... Captured NSCAA Youth Boys All-American honors his senior season ... All-league honoree in 2013 ... Helped lead David to the CIF Championship match as a freshman in 2011 ... Played club with DeAnza Force SC and also played with Davis Legacy, Chicago Magic Academy and Real Salt Lake ... Earned U.S. National Team call-ups with the U-14, U-15, U-16 and U-18 programs.