February 13, 2013

Furman Soccer Announces Nationally-Ranked Signing Class

Greenville, S.C. -- The Furman men’s soccer program will welcome eight new faces for the 2013 season, in a signing class that Top Drawer Soccer has ranked as the No. 2 class in the nation, it was announced on Wednesday by Paladin head coach Doug Allison.

The eight-member signing class, including forward Evan De Ycaza, forward Bobby Edet, center back Trevor Haberkorn, goalkeeper Joseph Melong, defender Wellford Moore, midfielder Marco Ortiz, midfielder Eli Pinner and defender Dylan Rowe, contains five players who were ranked in either Top Drawer Soccer’s IMG Academy 150 or College Soccer News’ Top 150 for the class of 2013.

“We are very excited to have signed this excellent class, and we think they will represent the program, Furman University, and their families very well,” said Allison. “This class is outstanding both on and off the pitch. We look forward to having them as part of our 2013 team and seeing the enduring mark they will leave on our program. It is truly a pleasure to bring these promising young men to campus. We hope to be able to add to this group in the coming months.”

Haberkorn has become a recognizable name in youth soccer as a starting center back for the United States U-18 National Team. The NSCAA Youth All-American and Keller, Texas, native was the second ranked player in the state of Texas, second ranked defender in the nation and No. 12 player overall in the 2013 class according to Top Drawer Soccer’s IMG Academy 150. Edet, a native of Frisco, Texas, and No. 28 ranked player on College Soccer News’ Top 150, was rated as the fourth best player in the state and No. 44 in the nation by Top Drawer while Fort Worth, Texas product Marco Ortiz was tabbed as the fifth rated player in Texas and No. 47 in the country.

“This is an extremely strong class that we are expecting to have an immediate impact on our program,” said Paladin assistant coach Anthony Esquivel. “The class is well-rounded, very diverse, and will add to Furman’s campus. There is a reason why Top Drawer Soccer recently ranked our 2013 Recruiting Class No. 2 in the country behind UCLA. These players are true to the Furman tradition of excellence, and I am looking forward to coaching them.”

Furman is set to return eight starters from a 2012 squad the posted a 12-4-3 overall record and 4-2-1 Southern Conference mark.

Signee Pos. Ht. Hometown Previous School Club Team
Evan De Ycaza F 5-8 Cary, N.C. Apex HS CASL Chelsea Academy
Bobby Edet F 6-0 Frisco, Texas Liberty HS FC Dallas Academy
Trevor Haberkorn D 6-3 Keller, Texas Keller HS Solar Chelsea SC Academy
Joseph Melong GK 6-0 Winnipeg, Manitoba Shattuck-St. Mary’s Shatuck-St. Mary’s Academy
Wellford Moore D 6-2 Birmingham, Ala. The Westminster School Vestavia Hills SC
Marco Ortiz MF 5-8 Fort Worth, Texas Liberty HS FC Dallas Academy
Eli Pinner MF 5-6 Atlanta, Ga. Paideia School Gwinnett Soccer Association
Dylan Rowe D 5-9 New Braunfels, Texas New Braunfels HS Classics Elite Academy

Evan De Ycaza
5-8, F
Cary, N.C.
Projected graduate of Apex High School and standout for coaches John Bradford and Rusty Scarborough with CASL Chelsea Academy... Ranked No. 75 in the 2013 class by College Soccer News... Named a three-star recruit and ranked No. 15 in the South Atlantic region by Top Drawer Soccer... Netted 23 goals in 28 games for CASL Chelsea Academy U15/U16 team during 2011-12 to finish as the top scorer in the Southern Atlantic Division... Helped his club to a 19-3-6 record and South Atlantic regular season title in 2011-12... Named to the Top Drawer Soccer Development Academy Team of the Week for May 17 and June 12, 2012... Has tallied two goals in nine matches during the 2012-13 U.S. Soccer Development Academy season to help CASL Chelsea U17/U18 to a Southeast Division leading 7-2-1 record.

Bobby Edet
6-0, F
Frisco, Texas

Projected graduate of Liberty High School who played his club soccer for FC Dallas Academy... Ranked as the No. 28 player in the Class of 2013 by College Soccer News... Ranked No. 44 in the Class of 2013, four-star recruit, No. 4 in Texas and the No.13 forward by Top Drawer Soccer... Scored eight goals in 12 matches thru January 2012 while guiding FC Dallas to a 7-3-2 record in the USSF Development Academy Frontier Division... Helped his club to the 2012 U17/U18 Devepoment Academy Championship and 2011 U17/U18 Development Academy finals... A 2010 Generation adidas U-17 participant.

Trevor Haberkorn
6-3, D
Keller, Texas

Projected graduate of Keller High School... Starting center back for the United States U-18 Men’s National Team and 2012 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Youth All-American... A Top Drawer Soccer five-star recruit and No. 12 in the class of 2013in the IMG Academy 150... Ranked as Top Drawer Soccer’s No. 2 defender nationally and No. 2 player in the state of Texas... Rated No. 25 in the College Soccer News class of 2013 top 150... Has participated with the U-18 MNT throughout 2012... A member of the U.S. U-17 Residency program in 2010-11... Captain of USSF Solar Chelsea Academy... A 2011 and 2012 USSF Winter Showcase All-Star selection... 2012 Central Conference Super XI pick... Has guided Solar Chelsea U17/U18 to an 8-6-1 record in 2012-13 while scoring two goals in 12 games.

Joseph Melong
6-0, GK
Winnipeg, Manitoba

Plays goalkeeper for coach Tim Carter at Shattuck-St. Mary’s Soccer Academy in Minnesota... Ranked No. 131 in the College Soccer News Top 150 and tabbed a three-star recruit by Top Drawer Soccer... Has guided his club to a 10-5-0 record while notching six shutouts during the 2012-13 season... Helped Shattuck-St. Mary’s to a 13-5-6 record and USSF Academy Playoffs appearance during the 2011-12 season... Named to the Top Drawer Soccer Development Academy Team of the Week for April 21, 2012... Captured the 2011 Minnesota Cup.

Wellford Moore
6-2, D
Birmingham, Ala.

Center back for coach Patrick Fitzgerald at The Westminster School of Oak Mountain... A Top Drawer Soccer three-star recruit... Led his team to a 20-1-1 record and state quarterfinal appearance as a junior in 2012... A two-time all-county pick and 2012 all-metro selection... Has captained his squad each of the past two seasons... Plays club soccer for Vestavia Hills SC... Guided his club to the 2011 and 2012 Region III Central Division title and 2012 Alabama state title... Member of the Region III Olympic Development Team... Participated in Region III ODP trips to Mexico and Costa Rica... Also lettered in basketball, track and tennis... Part of 2011 4x4000 relay state championship team.

Marco Ortiz
5-8, MF
Fort Worth, Texas

A product of Liberty High School, Ortiz plays his club soccer for FC Dallas Academy... Rated the No. 47 recruit in the 2013 class, a four-star recruit, the No. 5 player in Texas and No. 23 midfielder in the nation by Top Drawer Soccer... Has started all 12 matches in 2012-13 while helping FC Dallas U17/U18 to a 7-3-2 record and third place in the USSF Development Academy Frontier Division... Scored five goals while leading FC Dallas to a 30-4-4 record and Texas Division championship in 2012... Participated in 2011 trip to Madrid, Spain, to play Real Madrid U16, Athletico Madrid U17, Rayo Vallecano U16 and an Equador Select U17 Team... Tallied 21 assists playing prep soccer as a freshman at Crawley High School... Earned newcomer of the year honors.

Eli Pinner
5-6, MF
Atlanta, Ga.

A standout midifeler for coach Eric Thomas at the Paideia School... Rated a three-star recruit by Top Drawer Soccer... Led Paideia to a 16-1-0 record and Class A semifinals appearance in 2012, and 16-1-1 record and semifinal finish in 2011... Played club soccer for GSA ‘96 Phoenix Red... Guided his club to the finals of the 2012 Georgia State Cup and Southern Regional Championships... Captured the 2011-12 USYS National League U-16 title... Named to the “Best XI at the USYS National Championships... Member of the Region III ODP team.

Dylan Rowe
5-9, D
New Braunfels, Texas

Projected graduate of New Braunfels High School... A Top Drawer Soccer four-star recruit and ranked No. 20 player in Texas...Guided his school to three consecutive playoff appearances including a 16-4-3 record as a sophomore... Led team in scoring as a sophomore and junior while earning all-district honors both seasons... Plays club soccer for Classics Elite U17/U18 in the USSF Development Academy Frontier Division... Has scored one goal in 10 appearances during the 2012-13 campaign.