FHSU Sports Information
Fort Hays State Men’s Soccer Head Coach Brett Parker announced 11 signees for the 2014 season. The signing class includes five high school signees, three international signees, including two international transfers, and three junior college transfers. Last season, FHSU earned a berth Super Regional Semifinals in the NCAA Tournament, graduating seven seniors.
“As with most programs across the country, we are very excited with the new student-athletes we have coming in this fall,” head coach Brett Parker said. “With a strong group returning from our 2013 squad, our focus with this class was bringing in players that can impact our program right away as well as adding players that will help fill the void of our seven seniors in 2014.”
Profiles of the 11 signees with comments from Parker are below:
Mauricio Castorino– Graduated from the American School of Asuncion (High School) and will transfer to FHSU from the Universidad Americana in Asuncion, Paraguay.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Mauri Castorino is a very versatile player that will help us this fall in a number of attacking positions. His work rate and movement off the ball are tremendous.”
Maurizio Costa – Will transfer to Fort Hays State from the Universidad American in Asuncion, Paraguay. Costa was one of two players selected from Paraguay to the finals of the Nike “The Chance” competition and finished 52 out of 100 worldwide competitors at the finals held in Barcelona, Spain.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Maurizio Costa is a very quick and exciting attacking player that will bring a different element to our attack this fall.”
Daniel Davila – Originally signed with FHSU out of high school and redshirted in his first year. Davila competed at Northeast Texas Community College in 2013 for former Fort Hays State Assistant Coach Donovan Dowling. Helped NTCC to its most successful season in program history with a 14-7 record and a berth in the Region 14 semi-finals starting all 20 games played. Was a four-year starter for the Andromeda FC USSDA program in high school and enters FHSU as a sophomore for the 2014 season.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Daniel Davila originally signed for us in 2011 and after a redshirt year here decided to go back to Texas for a few years. He had an outstanding season at NTCC last year and we look forward to having him back at FHSU this fall to help solidify our back line.”
Alex Granados – Four-year letter winner and starter at Air Academy High School in Colorado Springs, Colo., for Coach Espen Hosien. Granados was a First Team All-State selection as a senior, and helped lead AAHS to 2010 4A state championship and 2013 runner-up finish. Captained the Pride Predators club team for eight years under Coach Brian Contreras, leading them to the 2013 U-17 Colorado State Championship
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Alex Granados is a player that we’ve gotten to know very well over the past few years through our camps. He is a very consistent and technical central midfielder that fits in very well with our style of play. I am really looking forward to seeing his development over the course of his career at FHSU.”
Daniel Kelly – Four-year starter at Kapaun Mt. Carmel HS in Wichita, Kan. Named First Team All-State as a Senior and led KMC to 4 consecutive 3rd place finishes in the Kansas 5A State Tournament. Played club ball for the Kansas Rush Wichita ’96, coached by Sammy Lane.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Daniel Kelly is another player that I’ve known for several years having coached him with the Kansas ODP team. He is a very attack-minded outside back that will give us a major threat going forward as well as being a very solid defender. I believe he is one of the top players to come out of Kansas this year and we are thrilled to have him at FHSU for the next four years.”
Dinafor Kori – Transfer from Barton County Community College, where he played two seasons for Oliver Twelvetrees and Kevin Kewley. Kori started all 16 games last fall as a defender and midfielder, scoring one goal and adding three assists. Kori is a graduate of Putnam City North HS in Oklahoma City, Okla.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Dinafor Kori is a player we’ve tracked since high school where he was teammates with several of our current and former players. He brings a level of athleticism and size to our midfield and backline that we have lacked in recent years. I am very excited that he has chosen FHSU to finish his career.”
Brian Ness – Three-year letter winner and two-year captain at Olathe Northwest High School for Coach Chris Graham. In 2013, his senior year, Ness was named First Team All-Sunflower and 6A First Team All-State. Played for the Kansas Rush club team for Coach Daouda Kante, helping them to the 2012 Kansas State Cup championship, and was named Most Valuable Player in 2013.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Brian Ness attended our residential camp last summer and blew us away with his performance. In my opinion, he is the most dynamic attacking player that we evaluated in the state this year. His 1-on-1 attacking ability is outstanding and we expect him to make an immediate impact in our attack this fall.”
Paul Luna – Three-year letter winner at Hebron HS in Carrollton, TX for Coach Monte Pace, was named Offensive Player of the Year and was an All-District selection as a junior (2012). Played club ball for the FC Dallas 96 Boys under Coach Chris Che.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Paul Luna is a very technical and smooth central midfielder that has a bright future in our program. He is very calm on the ball and always a threat going forward. He will fit in very well in our system and we expect him to grow into a very good player in our program for years to come.”
Daniel Molina – Transfer from Mesa Community College in Mesa, Ariz., where he played his sophomore season for Coach Tim Bartmetler. Molina was named All-ACCAC Honorable Mention in 2013. Played one season at Iowa Western Community College in 2012, and as a youth player, was coached by Martin Vasquez with the Real Salt Lake Academy.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Daniel Molina is a very versatile and passionate player that we are thrilled to have finish his career at FHSU. He is equally effective as both a defender and in the midfield. He had tremendous success as a junior college player and has a fantastic club background with the Real Salt Lake youth academy. We expect Danny to make a big impact in our program.”
Tobias Patino – Native of Asuncion, Paraguay and is graduating from the Colegio Nacional High School. Played club soccer for Club Nacional youth academy.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Tobias Patino is without a doubt the most complete midfielder that we have ever recruited at FHSU. In our recruiting process, we have not evaluated a player who impacts the game as much as Tobias. His movement and ability on the ball is at a level that is not often seen in the United States. We are very confident that Tobias will step in immediately and make a huge impact on a veteran team this fall.”
Luan Silva – Graduate of Mountain Vista High School in Highlands Ranch, Colo. Silva started at MVHS as a freshman before opting to play only club soccer his final three years under Coach Lorne Donaldson with the Real Colorado US Soccer Development Academy. Silva has been a regular starter for the Real Colorado Academy for the past three years as a left back and left midfielder.
Coach Parker’s Comments: “Luan Silva comes from a very good club background with the Real Colorado USSDA team and should transition to the level of the college game very quickly. He is a very quick and dynamic left sided player that can play as a left back or as a left wing. We are very excited to have Luan at FHSU and expect him to make an immediate impact.”
A complete breakdown of the 2014 men’s soccer signing class is below…
| Name |
Hometown |
Previous School |
Position |
| Mauricio Castorino |
Asuncion, Paraguay |
Universidad Americana |
FWD |
| Maurizio Costa |
Asuncion, Paraguay |
Universidad Americana |
DEF/MID |
| Daniel Davila |
Garland, TX |
Northeast Texas CC |
DEF |
| Alex Granados |
Colorado Springs, CO |
Air Academy |
MID |
| Daniel Kelly |
Wichita, KS |
Kapaun Mt. Carmel |
DEF |
| Dinafor Kori |
Oklahoma City, OK |
Barton CC |
DEF/MID |
| Brian Ness |
Olathe, KS |
Olathe Northwest |
FWD |
| Paul Luna |
Carrollton, TX |
Hebron HS |
MID |
| Daniel Molina |
Tempe, AZ |
Mesa CC |
DEF/MID |
| Tobias Patino |
Asuncion, Paraguay |
|
MID |
| Luan Silva |
Highland Ranch, CO |
Mountain Vista |
DEF/MID |
