Soccer Announces 13-Man Recruiting Class

Bradley's 13-man class of newcomers includes one transfer and 13 freshmen

Bobby Parker, Associate AD for Communications Soccer 5/29/2019 2:36:00 PM

PEORIA, IL – Bradley Soccer will welcome 13 newcomers to the squad for the 2019 season, according to the official announcement of this year's recruiting class by veteran head coach Jim DeRose Wednesday. The 13 newcomers include a Big 10 Conference transfer and 12 freshmen, together coming to the Bradley campus from six states and two foreign countries.

The incoming class of Braves not only is large in number, but also large in stature: on average, the 13 newcomers stand 6-feet tall.

"We are excited to add twelve freshmen and a transfer to our program," said DeRose, who is preparing for his 24th year at the helm of the Bradley Soccer program. "The group of student-athletes covers a large geographic area and brings positional diversity, technical and tactical quality and the ability to contribute to our team immediately. The depth of our returning players is great and we expect the new additions to enhance our competitive training environment and quickly adapt to the high level of Division I college soccer.

"We are grateful for the opportunity to bring quality young men to Bradley University and our athletic department," DeRose added. "The recruiting and identification process continues to have its twists and turns with domestic and international scouting. With travel throughout our country and Europe, our staff was able to find student-athletes who spent time with quality coaches and prestigious clubs, and those backgrounds have them well prepared for the academic and soccer experience that lies ahead."

2019 Bradley Soccer Recruiting Class
Complete bio available by click each student-athlete's name

Name	Yr.	Pos.	Ht.	Wt.	Hometown (High School)	Club
Jack Armitage	Fr.	D	6-2	175	Lakeville, MN (Lakeville North HS)	Prior Lake Soccer Club
Robert "Guy" Beasley	Fr.	M	5-11	150	Brandon, MI (Brandon HS)	Vardar Soccer
Erik Catus	Fr.	D	6-2	198	Des Moines, IA (Johnston HS)	Sporting Iowa Academy
Daniel Chandler	Fr.	D	6-0	160	Frisco, TX (Frisco Centennial HS)	FC Dallas 01B Premier
Danny Collins	Fr.	F	5-10	155	Springfield, IL (Springfield HS)	St. Louis FC Academy
*Mikey Conneh	Jr.	M	5-7	160	Sheffield, Yorkshire, England (Meadowhead School)	Sheffield Wednesday FC
Jack Douglas	Fr.	D	6-3	180	St. Louis, MO (Liberty HS)	St. Louis Scott Gallagher '01 Elite
Alex Olson	Fr.	M/F	6-1	160	Park Ridge, IL (Maine South HS)	Sockers FC
Reed Rogers	Fr.	M/F	6-0	155	Jacksonville, IL (Jacksonville HS)	Springfield Area Soccer Association
Devin Slingsby	Fr.	M	5-11	160	Beaverton, OR (Portland Jesuit HS)	Westside Timbers
Rasmus Smidtslund	Fr.	D	5-11	167	Helsinki, Finland (Pohjois-Haagan yhteiskoulu)	Laajasalo Pallo & Tikkurilan Palloseura
Camden Starzyk	Fr.	M/F	5-10	145	Lake St. Louis, MO (Christian Brothers College)	St. Louis FC Academy
Cameron Strang	Fr.	D	6-5	190	Naperville, IL (Naperville Central HS)	Galaxy SC

*Conneh transferred from Penn State during the winter break

Recruiting Class Highlights

Danny Collins leads his St. Louis FC U18/19 team with 12 regular-season goals, good for 10th in the Central Conference for goals scored. His team is nearing qualification for the 2019 US Soccer Development Academy (USSDA) playoffs.
Cameron Strang's club team, Galaxy Soccer Club, won the 2018 US Youth Soccer (USYS) national championship and has begun the defense of its title in 2019.
Jack Douglas and Camden Starzyk both play for St. Louis Scott Gallagher (SLSG) Elite and won the USYS Midwest Regional title in 2018. SLSG Elite has started the path to the 2019 USYS national championship by winning the Midwest Conference, automatically qualifying the team for the regional competition.
Erik Catus' Sporting Iowa Central U18 team won the Iowa Soccer Championship Series to qualify for the USYS Midwest Regional Championship.
Jack Armitage's Prior Lake Soccer Club is competing in the Minnesota State Cup and a tournament victory will qualify the team for the USYS Midwest Regional Championship.
Dan Chandler's FC Dallas Youth Premier won the USYS Frontier Conference to qualify for the USYS Southern Regional Championship.
Guy Beasley's Vardar ECNL U18/19 team currently sits in second place in the ECNL Midwest Conference.

Bradley returns 14 lettermen from the 2018 squad that finished 8-5-4 overall and completed the second unbeaten non-conference season in program history. The group of returning Braves is led by rising junior Gerit Wintermeyer, who earned USC All-West Region honors in 2018 by scoring 20 points on eight goals and four assists. The Braves also posted a 3-1-1 record during the 2019 spring exhibition season, which included a 2-1 victory at 2018 College Cup participant Michigan State.

Under DeRose's direction, Bradley Soccer boasts seven Missouri Valley Conference championships and seven NCAA Tournament appearances.

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