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WVU Announces Men’s Soccer Signing Class
February 09, 2016 12:15 PM | Men's Soccer
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – West Virginia University men’s soccer coach Marlon LeBlanc has announced that 15 student-athletes will join the Mountaineers for the 2016 season.
The class features Antonio Bachmann (Gainesville, Virginia), Lucca Barbaris (Doral, Florida), Ben Boone (Annapolis, Maryland), Jake Coale (Newark, Delaware), Michael Cormack (Clearwater, Florida), Kyle Davis (Charleston, West Virginia), Sebastian Garcia-Herreros (Southwest Ranches, Florida), Steven James (Sussex, England), Ryan Kellogg (Parkville, Missouri), Albert Llop (Vila-Real, Spain), Logan Lucas (Lee’s Summit, Missouri), Andrew Rullow (St. James, Trinidad), Jose Santos (Marrero, Louisiana), Tyler Shaffer (Charleston, West Virginia) and Ethan Shim (Maraval, Trinidad).
“This recruiting class is as good and as deep as any we’ve ever had,” LeBlanc said. “I’m very pleased with not just the quality of the student-athletes we’ve brought in, but I’m most pleased with the character of the young men we’ve added. We’ve brought in good students and good people. Our program requires our student-athletes to be the best on the field, in the classroom and in the community, and this group of guys fit that mold.
“All these guys have a desperate conviction to be at West Virginia University and to wear the Gold and Blue. They have a passion for team over self. Time will eventually tell how good this group can be, but I’m optimistic that each one of these young men has his eyes set on team success and that they are all willing to put in the required work.”
The 15-member 2016 class features student-athletes from seven states, including two from West Virginia. Four newcomers come from outside the United States, two from Trinidad and one from England and Spain.
Bachmann hopes to pursue a degree in Sports and Exercise Psychology at WVU. His parents are Cesar and Yasmine, and he has two brothers.
Lucca Barbaris is one of two from Weston FC Academy in this year’s class. A Doral, Florida, native, he is a 5-8 midfielder and attends Doral Academy. A two-time state champion, Barbaris was named to the All-Dade First Team in 2014-15. In addition to a pair of state titles, he helped his team to a regional championships.
Barbaris is undecided on a potential major at WVU. His parents are Antonio and Adrianne, and he has one sister and one brother.
A First Team All-State honoree and 2013 state champion, Ben Boone is an Annapolis, Maryland, native. He is a 6-2 midfielder and played for the SAC Academy and attends Broadneck High School. A four-year varsity player for his high school team, Boone set a school record for games played, was team captain as a senior and earned four first team all-county and all-state accolades. For SAC Academy, he helped his team win a state title in 2013 and qualified for the Region I Premier League in 2015 and 2016.
Boone hopes to major in athletic coaching/sports management when he arrives in Morgantown. His parents are Brent and Traci, and he has one brother.
A 5-9 midfielder, Jake Coale comes from Newark, Delaware. A three-time state champion with the Delaware Rush and an All-State honoree at Newark High School, Coale was a team captain and led Newark to its first state tournament berth in eight years. He earned All-State and All-Conference accolades and was selected to the Blue-Gold All Star Team. As a senior at Newark, he had 12 goals and four assists.
Coale hopes to study sports and exercise psychology at WVU. His parents are Ken and Nancy, and he has one sister.
Michael Cormack is a 5-10 defender and comes to WVU from the IMG Soccer Academy. The first commitment in this year’s class, he was named the Most Improved Player on his IMG team in both 2012-13 and 2013-14. He is a Clearwater, Florida, native.
Cormack aspires to major in business administration and marketing at West Virginia. His parents are Gary and Denis, and he has one sister.
Kyle Davis is one of two West Virginia natives in this year’s class. From Charleston, Davis is a 6-1 forward and attends Cross Lanes Christian School and plays for the West Virginia FC. He is a four-time WVCAT state champion, a two-time WVCAT All-Tournament MVP and was named to the Academic All-America West Virginia Soccer Second Team in 2015. For West Virginia FC, Davis helped his team to four West Virginia State Cup titles.
Davis wants to major in criminology at WVU. His parents are Robert and Joyce, and he has two brothers.
A Southwest Ranches, Florida, native, Sebastian Garcia-Herreros is a 5-7 defender. He attends Cypress Bay High School and plays for Weston FC. A Class of 2016 Top 150 recruit by TopdrawerSoccer.com, Garcia-Herreros also played in the Pebbe Viola Tournament in Italy.
Garcia-Herreros hopes to study civil engineering at WVU. His parents are German and Liliana, and he has one brother.
Defenseman Steven James hails from Sussex, England, and was an NSCAA and NJCAA consensus All-American a season ago with Louisburg College. With Louisburg, James helped his team win the junior college national champions in 2015 and served as the team captain. He attended high school at Heathfield Community College in England.
James will come to WVU as a junior and hopes to study sports management. His parents are Alan and Karen, and he has one brother.
Ryan Kellogg is one of two in this year’s class and the latest to join the Mountaineers from Sporting KC Academy. A Parkville, Missouri, native, he was named the 2015 Bob Gansler Sporting KC Academy Player of the Year. Last season, he started all 30 matches for Sporting KC’s U-18 team and helped the squad reach the academy playoffs and win the U.S. Youth Futsal National Championship.
Kellogg hopes to study business finance at WVU. His parents are Rick and Kim, and he has three sisters. His sister, Kortni, played soccer at UMKC from 2012-13.
A Vila-Real, Spain, native, Albert Llop joined the Mountaineers in January for the spring semester and will be in his second semester with the team next fall. The 5-10 defender comes to WVU from the Villareal CF Academy, and he attended high school at IES Francesc Tarrega Vila-Real. His team was named the best team of Comunidad Valenciana Cadete in 2013, and they also finished second in Liga Nacional and Liga Autonomica Cadete.
Llop looks to study physical activity education and coaching at West Virginia. His parents are Juan and Maria, and he has one sister.
Logan Lucas is the second member of this year’s class and the fifth on next year’s WVU roster to come from the Sporting KC Academy. From Lee’s Summit, Missouri, he is a 6-0 defenseman and attended Lee’s Summit West High. With Sporting KC Academy, Lucas won two state championships and helped his squad to a pair of regional runner-up finishes.
Lucas is undecided on his major at WVU. His parents are Mike and Stephanie, and he has one brother and two sisters.
From St. James, Trinidad, Andrew Rullow played for Caledonia AIA. A 6-4 midfielder, he attended high school at St. Anthony’s College. For St. Anthony’s, Rullow won the Most Goals Award from 2010-2014 in the Secondary Schools Football League, he helped his squad win the under 14, 16 and 19 championships and his team also was crowned the North Intercol Champions. In 2014, he was named the Most Improved Athlete. For Caledonia AIA, Rullow earned the Most Disciplined Award.
Rullow wants to pursue a degree in management at West Virginia. His parents are Michelle Rullow and the late Everton Peters, and he has one brother and two sisters.
The lone goalkeeper in this year’s class, Jose Santos is from Marrero, Louisiana. At 6-1, he was the starting goalie on the Tyler Community College team that advanced to the NJCAA finals a season ago. He attended Archbishop Shaw High School and played for the Soccer Innovations club team. In high school, Santos was named an All-District goalkeeper as a junior and senior and earned First Team All-Metro honors and Second Team All-State accolades as a senior.
Santos will come to WVU as a junior and looks to study criminology. His parents are Jose Santos, Sr., and Candida Paolilla, and he has three brothers and two sisters.
A 6-2 defender, Tyler Shaffer is an in-state star from Charleston. One of two from West Virginia in this year’s class, he was the Midfielder of the Year at Capital High School and also played for the West Virginia Soccer Club, where he won five West Virginia state championships. Named to multiple All-State and All-Conference First Teams in 2015, Shaffer was named the conference player of the year and was a team captain. He owns the school’s single-season scoring record, with 39 goals scored in 2015.
At WVU, Shaffer wants to major in natural gas and petroleum engineering. His parents are Scott and Kristin, and he has one sister and one brother.
From Maraval, Trinidad, Ethan Shim is 6-1 midfielder. He attends St. Mary’s College and his club team is the Premier Football Academy. At St. Mary’s, Shim was a vice-captain in 2015 and named a Secondary School Premiere League Top 25 Player. He earned Footballer of the Year honors in 2014 and helped his team win the league title in 2013.
Shim wants to pursue a degree in athletic training at West Virginia. His parents are Ryan and Annette, and he has one brother and a sister.
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