Kansas Wesleyan University head men’s soccer coach Phillip Bohn announced the signing of five student athletes for the 2015 school year.
Ben Carter (Jacksonville, Florida), Fauris Franco (San Francisco, California), Jason Goicochea (Moreno Valley, California), Mark Sanchez (Houston, Texas) and Muhammed Cole (Lavon, Texas) will join a recruiting class that already includes 10 student athletes set to begin their careers at KWU in August.
“We are really excited about this recruiting class and how it’s coming together,” Bohn said. The standard is very high in our program, so the challenge is reloading with a strong recruiting class that will complement each other and our returning boys. We are confident we have a class coming together that will help keep the standard high and fight for another KCAC championship.”
Carter, a 5-10 forward, completed two years at Dodge City Community College. As a sophomore he started 15 games, scoring seven goals along with five assists. He finished with a team high 19 points, helping lead his team to an 11-5-2 record.
“Ben has a strong soccer IQ allowing him to read play well and help create goal scoring opportunities,” Bohn said. “He’s a player that is comfortable playing anywhere across the frontline. We expect him to be another player to come in and raise the level of play.”
Franco, a 6-0 goalkeeper, comes to KWU after playing two years at Skyline Community College.
“Fauris is a very hard working goalkeeper,” Bohn said. “He has quality technical skill and very soft hands. After graduating two senior goalkeepers that helped anchor this team, we know there are big shoes to fill. Fauris will have a great opportunity to help solidify the position for us.”
Goicochea, a 5-10 central midfielder, played two years at San Bernardino Valley College. A first team All-Foothill Conference selection, Goicochea led the team in goals scored (7) and assists (11) putting him seventh in Conference in points with 25.
“Jason’s a quality center midfielder that’s also threat to score goals,” Bohn said. “Coming off a season where we scored a total of seven goals from our midfielders, we needed to add some scoring punch to our midfield. We also like Jason’s ability to control play within possession.”
Sanchez, a 5-9, forward, was a four-year letterman at Cesar Chavez High School. He plays his club soccer along with future Coyote Martin Guerrero at Los Guerreros.
“Mark is a technical attacking player that can impact our team in a variety of positions,” Bohn said. “He’s comfortable moving off the ball or linking up play receiving in to feet. Mark comes from a possession style of play with his club team which will make his transition much easier.”
Cole, a 6-1 forward, was a two-year letterman at Wylie High School, earning All-District honors as a senior. Cole plays his club soccer at Mutiny FC.
“Muhammed is a traditional back to goal center forward,” Bohn said. “He is very confident in his ability, and will provide us a big target player that over time will prove a handful for KCAC defenses.”
The Coyotes are coming off a 15-4-2 season in which they shared the KCAC regular season championship, while earning an at-large berth in the NAIA National Tournament.
