NORFOLK, VA. – Old Dominion men’s soccer head coach Alan Dawson announced the addition of seven student-athletes to the Monarch roster.
Overall the 2017 recruiting class is comprised of a goalkeeper, three forwards and three midfielders. Matthew Brummet, Edison Giron, Hans Kroschwitz and Zach LoBasso all join the Monarchs in the fall semester, while Mertcan Akar, Brandon Perdue and Dion Van der Aar, enrolled in the spring semester and are able to play immediately for the upcoming spring season.
“We are very excited with the group we are signing,” said head coach Alan Dawson. “We feel they will impact the program immediately and I feel like they have the personality and character that fits our style of play and the program we want to be. Overall I am very excited about this class and hope to strengthen it as we look forward to the 2017 campaign.”
The Monarchs lost five seniors at the end of the 2016 season.
Incoming Spring 2017
Mertcan Akar, Brandon Perdue and Dion Van der Aar committed to Old Dominion in the fall and began classes in January for the 2017 spring semester.
Mertcan Akar, a goalkeeper from Cologne, Germany, is a rising sophomore transfer from Belmont University where he started all 18 matches in net. He collected an NCAA best 109 saves during the 2016 season, while his 6.06 saves per match ranked him second nationally. Akar earned Horizon League Defensive Player of the Week honors (8/29) after his first weekend playing NCAA Division I soccer (12 saves in two games). His 109 saves put him fourth for most saves recorded in a single season in Belmont soccer history.
Dawson On Akar: “Mertcan was statistically number one in the country at the Division I level in saves (109). We are excited and feel like he can be a competitive keeper for us. We are happy to get him in here for the spring season to make him more comfortable heading into the fall.”
Brandon Perdue, a forward from Chesapeake, Virginia, comes to Old Dominion after playing four years of club soccer for both the Virginia Rush and the Richmond United Development Academy. He was selected to the Best 22 Showcase in back-to-back years and during his four years playing for Academy he scored 45 goals. Brandon ranked in the TopDrawerSoccer.com Top 150 for the recruiting class of 2017.
Dawson On Perdue: “Brandon is a local player who has a lot of pride in ODU and has seen a lot of our games. Perdue is an attacking, immediate impact player and it is great to have him coming into the program this spring. He is strong, has good pace and we feel we can play him in any of the attacking positions with success.”
Dion Van der Aar, a central midfielder of Haarlem, Netherlands, played soccer at Landstown high school in Virginia Beach, Va. He was named the 2014 All-Coastal Conference Rookie of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Coastal Conference second-team twice (’14 & ’16). In addition to high school soccer, Van der Aar played for the Beach FC 98B Red travel soccer team and was named team captain for the 2015-16 season.
Dawson On Van der Aar: “Van der Aar is a central midfield player and another local product. He is a bit of a late bloomer and is still growing into his body. He is technically clean and has a good sense for the game. We also plan to get him in the weight room to prepare him for the fall.”
Incoming Fall 2017
Signing their National Letters of Intent in February are Matthew Brummet, Edison Giron, Hans Kroschwitz and Zach LoBasso. The four freshmen will join the Monarchs at the beginning of the fall semester.
Matthew Brummet, a forward from Baltimore, Maryland, wrapped up a successful high school career at Archbishop Curley high school. In his senior season, he scored 15 goals and added eight assists to help lead his team to the Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association A Conference championship match. Brummet received first-team All-MIAA honors and led the league with 15 goals. He played for and was team captain of the Baltimore Bays 98/99 club team. Brummet holds a 4.4 GPA and is an honors student at Archbishop Curley.
Dawson On Brummet: “Brummet is an attacker with high energy. He is a dynamic athlete with great passion and love for the game. He is very competitive and is versatile enough to play in multiple attacking positions.”
Edison Giron, a midfielder from Alexandria, Virginia, comes to Old Dominion from J.E.B. Stuart high school. He played club soccer at DC United Academy, starting 30-of-39 matches over the last three seasons. During his time with DC, he scored 11 goals, including five during the 2016-17 season.
Dawson On Giron: “Edison is a dynamic and fast attacking player. He has great pedigree coming to us from the DC United club team in the MLS Academy. We feel he has played at a high level and can be a difference maker who can score some goals.”
Hans Kroschwitz is a central attacking midfielder from Bucks County, Pennsylvania. He attended Palisades high school and played for the very prestigious Players Development Academy (PDA). Hans participated in the 2016 National Academy Playoffs in Los Angeles and was in the top 150 athletes in consecutive years at the IMG Academy (2016 & 2017).
Dawson On Kroschwitz: “Hans is coming to us from one of the best club soccer programs in the country up at PDA. He is a dynamic, high-energy athlete with a great passion and love for the game. He is very competitive and will be an immediate impact player who can fill in at any attacking position.”
Zach LoBasso, a forward from Yardley, Pennsylvania, comes to Old Dominion after playing four years of varsity high school soccer at Pennsbury. LoBasso earned first-team All-Southeastern PA and All-League honors his sophomore, junior and senior years. During his high school career, he scored 38 goals and tacked on 23 assists. In addition to his high school team, LoBasso was a four-year captain for the Yardley Men’s Soccer Premier 98 club team.
Dawson On LoBasso: “LoBasso is a blue-collar, hard working, dependable and competitive attacking player. He has a great passion and love for the game as well. We are excited to get him and the rest of the signees into the program and are looking forward for the season to come.”
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