MSOC Preview

Men's Soccer Season Preview 2023

Knights Projected to Finish Second in ECC Preseason Poll

FLUSHING, N.Y. – The 2023 Queens College men's soccer team season officially gets underway Saturday (Sept. 2) afternoon on the road. 
 
The Knights are led by head coach Frank Vertullo who enters his sixth season in Flushing, and he will be assisted by returning assistant coaches in Alums Vincent Companion, and David Ramirez who enter their fourth season on the sidelines with Vertullo. 
 
Along with Companion and Ramirez, Vertullo has added his third Alum of Queens College and the men's soccer All-Time Goalkeeper record holder Giovanni Cruz to assist on the sideline. 
 
The 2022 season was a record-breaking season for Vertullo and his squad as the Knights finished the season with a program-best overall record of 13-7 which included their highest finish in the East Coast Conference standing at second. The regular season success would earn the squad their first-ever NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament appearance in program history. 
 
With their success, Vertullo would be named ECC Coach of the Year by his peers, while four student-athletes would All-Conference honors. At the end of the season, the Knights would have their All-American honoree for the first time since the 2011 season and the first under Vertullo's guidance. 
 
Heading into the 2023 season, Vertullo and his coaching staff have revamped the 2023 roster which includes a total of 34 student-athletes of which 13 return from the 2022 season. 
 
2023 Roster
Returners
 
One of the key figures in the Knights success was led by senior midfielder Adolfo Martinez Paquet (Sevilla, Spain) who led the Knights with 11 goals and two assists as he earned All-ECC honors before becoming the first Knight to earn All-American honors since the 2011 season. 
 
Senior midfielder Leo Pinto (Forest Hills, N.Y.) who earned All-ECC honors in 2022 returns for his final year of play with unfinished business. Last season Pinto tallied five goals and four assists as Queens set new records. 
 
Senior forward Nicholas Tagios (East Williston, N.Y.) enters the final year of his collegiate career with 10 career goals, four game-winning goals, and seven career assists to go with his All-ECC Honors earned in his first year. 
 
After having made an impact in his rookie year, Sophomore forward David Oprea (Oslo, Norway) will be looking to take his game to the next level after recording four goals, one assist, and two game-winning goals.
 
Defenders in juniors Jose Mendez (Queens, N.Y.), Nicolas Cifuentes Diaz (East Hampton, N.Y.), and Joaquim Johnson (Brooklyn, N.Y.) played a pivotal part in the backline as Queens recorded a program-best nine shutouts and will be looking to contribute once again. 
 
In the midfield sophomore Kevin Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) started all 20 games last season as a rookie logging 1563 minutes while recording one assist will once be relied on heavily.
 
Other returners in senior midfielder/forward Juan Monge Allue (Zaragoza, Spain), midfielders senior Tobias Holtz (Sachseln, Switzerland), sophomore Arvin Pereira (Westbury, N.Y.), senior defender Daniel Camara (Madrid, Spain) add depth and provide experience as part of last year's squad. 
 
Senior defender Michael Vogel (Burgkirchen, Germany) spent the 2022 season on the sideline recovering from an injury and will be looking to make an impact with his playing time this season.
 
Newcomers
Transfers
 
Graduate student and defender Leoluca Diefenbach (Saarland, Germany) brings valuable experience from his time at Florida Southern College. With a successful preseason behind him, Diefenbach has impressed Vertullo and the coaching staff and has been named one of the captains for the 2023 season. 
 
Junior and defender/midfielder Mohammedou Sow (Harlem, N.Y.) enters his first season in Flushing having transferred from fellow CUNY and ECC school College of Staten Island Dolphins. At CSI Sow appeared in 11 games earning 10 starts as he logged 861 minutes with one goal. 
 
Sophomores making their way into Flushing are midfielder Eyob Gaffigan (Walkersville, MD), a transfer from Division I Hofstra University, forward Chol Chol (Atlanta, GA), a transfer from Louisiana State University Eunice, David Akpan (Brentwood, N.Y.), a transfer from Central Connecticut State University, forward Harry Cooke (Market Drayton, England), a transfer from Lincoln Memorial University, and defender Andreas Charalambous (Limassol, Cyprus), a transfer from Southern Methodist University will all look to play a key part over the course of the season. 
 
Among the five sophomore transfers, the English native Cooke joins Paquet as the second All-American honoree on the roster and a scoring machine. Last season at LMU Cooke recorded 16 goals, two assists, with four game-winning games as he logged 1256 minutes earning 18 starts in 19 games played. 
 
Freshmen
There will be nine rookies raring to go with defenders Tommy Wagner (East Northport, N.Y.), a graduate of Commack High School, Derek Gildard (Bayshore, N.Y.), a graduate of West Islip High School, Ryan Harding (Port Jefferson Station, N.Y.), a graduate of Comsewogue High School, and Aiden Friel (Bohemia, N.Y.), a graduate of Connetquot High School
 
While midfielders in Kevin Velez (Huntington Station, N.Y.), a graduate of Huntington High School, Andrew Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.), a graduate of Connetquot High School and makes a brotherly reunion as he joins his older brother sophomore Kevin Johnson (Oakdale, N.Y.) on the team, and  Juan Gomez (Brentwood, N.Y.) will look to sneak into the midfield. 
 
Lastly forwards Tommy Gunn (Buenos Aires, Argentina), and Jason Udo (Bronx, N.Y.) will be vying for time with Pinto, Tagios, and Oprea returning from last year's starting lineup. 
 
Goalkeepers
 
With Cruz now watching from the sideline, the All-Time Program Record holder will now look to guide the five new goalkeepers who are part of the 2023 squad. 
 
Rookies Matt Katz (Amityville, N.Y), a graduate of Amityville High School, and Thanasis Shehadeh (Nicosia, Cyprus), a graduate of Kykkos A High School will look to learn from Cruz as they look to find some playing time. 
 
Sophomore Jake Balme (Sheffield, England), a transfer from Lincoln Memorial University comes to Queens with fellow teammate Cooke.
 
Junior Juan Cruz Ladino (Cali, Colombia) joins the men's soccer squad from the Knights Cross Country and Track & Field team as a two-sport athlete. 
 
Lastly, senior goalie Austin Matthews (Chico, CA) comes to Flushing as a transfer student from Hawaii Pacific University. 
 
East Coast Conference Preseason Poll 2023
 
Vertullo and the Knights have been projected to finish second in the East Coast Conference Preseason Poll while defending champions Mercy University are slated to defend their 2022 crown. 
 
With the new ECC Soccer Postseason format slated to begin this year, the ECC Men's Soccer Postseason play gets underway with the First Round competition on Wednesday, Nov. 1 on the campuses of the No. 3 and No. 4 seeds. Semifinal matches will be contested on Saturday, Nov. 4 at the No. 1 and No. 2 seeds, with the final slated for Saturday, Nov. 11 at the highest remaining seed.
 
Game Day Preview
 
The 2023 season kicks off in Rindge, New Hampshire against 2022 National Champions Franklin Pierce University Ravens on Saturday (Sept. 2) afternoon. 
 
It will be the fifth straight meeting for the Knights against the Ravens with Queens in search of their first wins against their regional opponent. The Knights take a 0-3-1 record into New Hampshire. 
 
Last season Queens opened the season against Franklin Pierce on their home field in Flushing, but it would be the Ravens who would spoil the season opener as the Knights fell 5-0. 
 
Follow the Knights
All home games will be live-streamed on the ECC Sports Network and fans can follow along on live stats as well.
 
Home Opener
 
Vertullo and the Knights will open a three-match homestand beginning on Wednesday (Sept. 6) evening as the Golden Falcons of Felician University visit Flushing. 
 
For the latest news on Queens College Athletics, follow the Knights at queensknights.com or via social media on Facebook (Queens College Athletics), X (Formerly Twitter) (@QCKnights), and Instagram (qcknightsny), men's soccer (qcmsoccer). 
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