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(April 13, 2007) - UC Riverside
men’s soccer has signed three players to National Letters
of Intent, UCR Head Men’s Soccer Coach Junior Gonzalez
announced Friday. Jonathan Kluz, Jon Alas and Joshua Kelly
will join the Highlanders in the fall of 2007, alongside forward
Cito Soriano, who is already on campus.
“The addition of
these four players for the fall 2007 playing season will immediately
impact the team’s results,” Gonzalez said. “We
are excited to start working with the team in August in preparing
this talented group of players to compete for a Big West Conference
Championship and earn a berth into the NCAA Tournament.”
Kluz, a 5-8 midfielder from
Rancho Cucamonga High School, was named team captain all four
of his seasons with the Cougars, helping lead them to the
second round of the CIF playoffs. A well-decorated club player,
Kluz featured for Arsenal FC, where he won seven league cup
championships from 1999-2002 and 2004-06. The team also won
several prestigious club competitions, including the Surf
Cup three times, Nomads Tournament twice, and the FC Delco
and Dallas Cups once each. The team also claimed the United
States Youth Soccer Association Boys Under-15 National Championship
from 2004-06. Individually, Kluz has been a member of the
Olympic Development Program (ODP) Cal South State team since
2002, also serving as captain. He has participated with the
ODP Region IV team since 2002 and trained with the USA Under-15
National Team in 2003.
“Jon Kluz is a natural
leader that has great work ethic,” Gonzalez said. “He
is a central midfield player who works extremely hard on both
sides of the ball.”
A teammate of Kluz’s
with Arsenal FC, Kelly is a forward/defender from Riverside’s
Martin Luther King High School. Kelly helped the Wolves to
three consecutive Ivy League titles from 2004-06 and was named
the league Most Valuable Player as a senior. He is a three-time
All-Ivy League selection and scored a combined 31 goals and
15 assists in his final two seasons. Kelly was also a captain
for Arsenal FC the last two seasons, playing as the team’s
sweeper. He was selected to the Red Bull League ’89
Team and will be competing this summer in China and Korea
as a member of the Inland Empire Korea League.
“Josh Kelly is an athletic physical central defender
who will provide great depth in our back line,” Gonzalez
said. “He is extremely talented and will help us in
winning aerial battles.”
Rounding out the signees
is Alas, a midfielder from Millikan High School in Long Beach.
Alas was a two-time All-Moore League selection as the Rams
reached the CIF semifinals in 2007 and the quarterfinals in
2006. As a senior, he was named to the 2007 Southern California
High School All-Star Team. Alas is also a four-time member
of the ODP Cal South Program and has twice been selected to
the regional team. He was a member of the ODP ’89 team
that claimed the 2006 national championship in Texas and,
in 2004-05, he was included in the national team pool. Alas
plays his club soccer for Irvine Strikers, with whom he won
the Nomads Spring and Thanksgiving Tournaments three times
each.
“Jonathan Alas is
a blue collar flank player who provides great service and
one-versus-one ability,” Gonzalez said. “He will
strengthen the team’s attack and provide depth to the
midfield position.”
The Highlanders lost just three players from the 2006 squad
and return 22 letterwinners for next season.
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