2018 William Penn Men’s Soccer Preview

William Penn University Athletics

William Penn University Athletics

by Wade Steinlage

Head Coach Jaymee Highcock interview video at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=47IGQntD03A

2017 record: 10-8-1 (6-6 Heart, 8th)
Starters returning/lost: 5/6
Letterwinners returning/lost: 12/16

Notable returners:
Eduardo Bonatto So. Rio Grande, Brazil
(Letterwinner, 4 goals)
Jack Kindell-Brown Sr. Chelmsford, England
(Letterwinner, 1 goal, 3 assists)
Joe Minton So. Stoke-on-Trent, England
(Letterwinner, 1 assist)
Jonathan Riley So. St. Neots, England
(Letterwinner, 1 assist)

Notable losses:
Diego Navarro
(Second-team all-Heart)
Callum Doyle
(Second-team all-Heart)
Juan Salazar
(Two-time letterwinner)
Emmanuel Morris
(Two-time letterwinner)

Notable newcomers:
Kenedy Deviska Fr. Haiti
Enrico Baldon Jr. Sao Paulo, Brazil
Bernardo Lima Jr. Brazil
Miguel Barbosa Jr. Brazil

The William Penn men’s soccer team continues to make headway in a tough league and 2018 figures to be another step in the right direction.

The Statesmen owned a 10-8-1 mark in 2017, including a 6-6 mark in the Heart of America Athletic Conference. An early exit in the league tournament play-in round has the returning players on the pitch motivated for an even better campaign this fall.

For the second year in a row, WPU will not return an all-conference player, but Head Coach Jaymee Highcock views his team as one that can do even more damage this season.

Forward

Although Diego Navarro and his team-best 16 goals are gone, William Penn may have greater depth that will lead to more goal scoring in 2018.

Sirleaf Wiah (So., Brooklyn Park, Minn., Computer Science) is the lone returner up top and brings two assists from his freshman campaign.

Newcomer Steve Avelar (Jr., Los Angeles, Calif., Sociology) should also be highlighted in the striker talks.

Midfielder

Not only will the midfielders look to possess the ball, but they will also be expected to be a major player in the offensive attack, including returners Eduardo Bonatto (So., Rio Grande, Brazil, Business Management) and Amgad Hassan (Jr., Falls Church, Va., Computer Science) and newcomer Kenedy Deviska (Fr., Haiti, Wellness and Recreation). Bonatto leads all returners with four goals from last fall, while Hassan tallied two goals with one assist.

Fellow returners Akram Hassan (Jr., Falls Church, Va., Psychology), B.J. Gaunt (Jr., Lee’s Summit, Mo., Kinesiology), Moussa Ndiaye (Jr., St. Louis, Mo., Business Management), and Matt Devereux (So., Andover, England, Business Management) were cogs in last year’s machine and should be even more important this campaign.

Akram Hassan assisted on two goals a year ago, while Ndiaye scored three times with one assist.

Defender

Highcock loves for his crews to build up the attack from the backline and his 2018 squad will have the tools to make that a reality, in addition also stopping opposing scoring threats.

The returning trio of Joe Minton (So., Stoke-on-Trent, England, Physical Education), Jack Kindell-Brown (Sr., Chelmsford, England, Physical Education), and Jonathan Riley (So., St. Neots, England, Exercise Science) provide the experience, while newcomers Johann Derrick, Luis Amezcita (Jr., Inglewood, Calif., Sociology), Piero Aguirre (Fr., Ica, Peru, Biology), Dobbe Weverink (Grad., Amstelveen, Netherlands, Master’s of Business Leadership), and Donny Mesina (Jr., Inglewood, Calif., Sports Management) will certainly be active in all respects as well.

Kindell-Brown headlined the 2017 defensive line scoring with one goal and three assists; Minton and Riley both also assisted once.

Goalkeeper

Eight brand-new goalkeepers are in camp with three quickly rising to the top of the heap. The trio includes junior Miguel Barbosa (Brazil), freshman Randy Ochoa (Shawnee Mission, Kan.), and junior Austin Munoz (Harrisville, Utah, Sports Management).

Schedule/Conference

The 2018 campaign starts Wednesday as the Statesmen host Waldorf, a program that qualified for nationals a year ago. A seven-game non-conference slate will hopefully prepare the navy and gold for 12 tough tests in the Heart.

Despite his team being picked eighth in the Heart preseason coaches’ poll, Highcock believes William Penn is capable of playing with anyone on any given day. Missouri Valley reached the national title game last year and is figured to again top the league standings.

Posted by on Aug 19 2018. Filed under College Sports. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. Both comments and pings are currently closed.

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