Men's Soccer Announces 2021 Recruiting Class

CINCINNATI - Xavier men's soccer coach Andy Fleming has announced his 2021 signing class. The Musketeers will have eight newcomers on the team this fall.

2021 SIGNEES

NAME	HT.	WT.	POS.	HOMETOWN/HS/PREVIOUS SCHOOL	CLUB
Lotem Ben Dov	6-3	180	MF	Petah Tikva, Israel/Golda HS	FC Hapoel Herzliya
Fabrizio Bernal de la Garza	5-10	170	MF	Monterrey, Mexico/Ronald Reagan HS	San Antonio FC
Ethan Hegg	5-11	162	GK	Galena, Ohio/Olentangy Berlin HS	Columbus Crew Academy
Pol Hernandez	5-7	145	D	Teià, Spain/Universitat Autonoma de Barcelona/Akron	RCD Espanyol
Medard Mikobi	5-11	170	D/MF	Fort Wayne, Ind./Carmel HS	Indiana Fire Academy
Ethan Mills	5-10	150	MF	Cincinnati, Ohio/Madeira HS	FC Cincinnati Academy
Ekene Okeke	6-1	195	D	Houston, Texas/Texas Connections Academy	Houston Dynamo
Taylor Rhinehart	5-10	170	F	Fort Wayne, Ind./Homestead HS	Indiana Fire Academy

COACH FLEMING QUOTE

"This class is a culmination of a 13-month sprint, one in which I personally may have worked harder than I ever have on the recruiting trail. I want to thank our players and on campus staff for their efforts and our coaching staff as well. In particular Brian Cronin deserves credit as his network and know how helped us land four of these players since his arrival in August. For the third year in a row I think we've broadened our horizons a little bit and looked to add to the dimensions of our team. However in doing so, we stayed the course with adding Xavier type players and Xavier parents to our soccer family. We added as many as five who may play right away and by far have the most athletic class in my tenure. Eight players, one transfer, seven on academic scholarships, and three identified thru our camps. Seven from MLS Next League teams, two internationals, one is a Top 60 rated national recruit, and three were in USL amateur contracts, while another is in the mix with our Unites States Men's National Team in Futsal. While we won't know the impact of this class for years to come, many were sold on the chance to put our program back on the map and be builders, much like when I first arrived in 2010. They are up for the challenge and I'm thrilled to have them."

LOTEM BEN DOV

NOTABLES
• Enrolled in classes in January of 2021
• Played in 11 matches, making three starts during the spring season - totaling 643 minutes
• Won a U17 championship with Hapoel Hod Hasharon FC
• Played in the top tier U19 club - Hapoel Ramat Hasharon FC
• Served in Israeli Army for two years and eight months

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"Lotem arrived in January and got "free" season of BIG EAST soccer under his belt. After a small adjustment period he did well in spot off the bench for us before earning starts in our final few conference games. It was then that you saw the comfort and confidence levels kick in where he looked like some of the seasoned internationals that Pitt, Marshall and Seton Hall had during their NCAA runs in May. A fighter, technician and a leader, look for Lotem to continue his momentum in the fall and make a push for All-BIG EAST honors."

FABRIZIO BERNAL DE LA GARZA

NOTABLES
• Made his professional debut in the summer of 2020 with the USL Championship side San Antonio FC
• Signed First Team Academy Contract with USL side San Antonio FC
• Scored goal vs MLS side FC Dallas in 2021 preseason for San Antonio FC
• Played for the Texas UIL 6A State championship his freshman year
• MAde seven starts and scored five goals in his first year playing DA
• Grew up in Mexico and spent time in Pumas UNAM and Monterrey academies

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"Despite his talent and pedigree Fabrizio was a bit of a sleeper on the national scene. He scored five goals in his first seven DA games last year and had begun to create a buzz before the pandemic cut the season short. He was then with the first place USL1 San Antonio professional side full time all summer, culminating with his first professional debut in June. Adept at running players, Fabi has a unique combination of quickness, speed, power and balance…he can go around and through people, and is suited in wide areas or running behind the backline. His is a well spoken mature young man with a great IQ, based on his youth experiences with Tigres and Monterrey Academies when he lived in Mexico. He is a guy who should immediately increase our depth and competition level in the attack and likely will be a four-year mainstay for us."

ETHAN HEGG

NOTABLES
• Helped his HS team to a 7-0-1 record last fall
• Played for the Columbus Crew Academy

HiGHLIGHTS - bit.ly/3iSymoI

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"Our goalkeeper group is the deepest we've ever had and also the oldest. With that we will lose three at the end of 2021 and needed to add to our prospects. Ethan recently transitioned to the Columbus Crew and their trainer David Winner after much success with Ohio Premier and Chad Prickett. A top student, Ethan has tremendous quickness and is very good on reaction saves. His vision and ability to play with his feet fits in very well with an MLS youth club setup and reminds me a lot of former XU GK Nate Logan. Driven, coachable and able to get in the corner and make the big save, Ethan will use year one to develop some bulk and acclimate before jumping into what promises to be a very good battle for our starter in 2022."

POL HERNANDEZ

NOTABLES
• Played in 41 matches with 34 starts at Akron
• Helped lead Akron to a College Cup Appearance
• Played in five NCAA tournament matches with two starts
• Ranked third in the conference in league-only assists per match (0.60)
• Led team in assists in 2019 with four
• Named to TopDrawerSoccer.com's 2018 Men's Freshman Top 100 Postseason list (No. 94)
• Was an Akron Student-Athlete Advisory Council (SAAC) member

HIGHLIGHTS - bit.ly/3zD0NNs

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"It's very rare to get a player of Pols pedigree late in May, but we were fortunate enough to connect with him and hit it off. He has over 50 plus games under his belt, including NCAA tournament and Final IV minutes playing for Akron which is always in high stakes national level games. Our backline is the key to next season's success and his ability to fight, defend, escape pressure and get forward are all in demand and within Pol's skill set. One rival coach called him one of the best left backs in college soccer and I'm excited to see him excel with us."

MEDARD MIKOBI

NOTABLES
• Was a three year U.S Youth National Futsal Team Player
• Helped lead Fort Wayne United 01 boys win the 2019 state championship
• Scored in every match leading up to regionals as a center back
• Has been called up for trials with the U.S. Men's National Futsal Team leading up to World Cup Qualifying

HIGHLIGHTS - bit.ly/3vVl1Pw

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"Despite his ability and resume, Medard was actually discovered at our January ID camp back in 2019. First off, Medard has made his family very proud by graduating high school and matriculating to Xavier. He came to America via a lottery during a Civil War in his native Democratic Republic of Congo and has both acclimated and thrived in the past few years. At first you notice his physical stature but what's most impressive are his soft feet and ability to get out of any type of jam with the ball. This is what has gotten him time with the United States National Futsal team, with whom he'll look to qualify for a World Cup berth with this winter. Comfortable centrally in midfield or at outside back, Medard will have the luxury of January enrollment to acclimate before really hitting in stride in the fall of 2021."

ETHAN MILLS

NOTABLES
• Was a two-year member of FC Cincinnati's Academy

HIGHLIGHTS - bit.ly/3x9vqIR

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"As always we try to identify the top players in our city and keep them local. We were able to do that with Ethan. He took a big step going to an MLS Academy team and has held his own in several games against top clubs from around the nation. Further he's been moved around to different positions/roles and has handled it very well, being a great teammate, which will serve him well as he acclimates in years one and two. Great vision, smooth passer and smooth on the turn, Ethan is a leader and winner and will thrive in the classroom and community for us as well."

EKENE OKEKE

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"Ekene was someone who we were able to connect with during the fall period and develop a great rapport. He comes to us very well coached via Brian Reed and the MLS Houston Dynamo who play a very comprehensive professional style of soccer. Ekene is a top-five percent level athlete, had ACC interest and is college ready in that regard. He is comfortable on the ball and able to play out of pressure and build the game, which isn't always the case with players as athletic as he is. I look for him to expand his horizons and see if he's able to play as an outside back early in his career and compete for time there before sliding centrally later on in time. To think we have a guy like him as an added luxury to our backs for next year is a real feather in our cap and speaks to the depth we are continuing to attract."

TAYLOR RHINEHART

NOTABLES
• Was a two year member of Indiana Fire Academy in USSDA and MLS NEXT Leagues
• Led the team in goals as the captain in the 2019 USSDA season and currently in the 2020 MLSNEXT season
• Was a four-star recruit by TopDrawerSoccer.com
• Was a top-100 ranked recruit by TopDrawerSoccer.com

HIGHLIGHTS - bit.ly/3gRdflk

QUOTING COACH FLEMING
"When you think of strikers a few things usually hold true…they score goals but don't also create them, and that defenders usually beat up on strikers. Taylor defies both. He's a wonderful passer of the ball and setup man and posts up and does hold up play as well as anyone in the country. By the end of a game, he has beaten up on the defender and is a tremendous physical presence in the box. This past year he's dropped 18 pounds and leaned out which has resulted in him scoring 10 goals in his first nine matches in last fall's MLS Next league and a ranking as one of the nation's top-25 strikers. He joins Medard as the 11th and 12th Indiana Fire players to join our program and has the soccer IQ and physical tools needed to have a complimentary role in our attack come August and certainly a prominent role over three or even four years."

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Players Mentioned

Lotem Ben Dov

Nate Logan

Medard Mikobi

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