Men's Soccer Announces Seven Freshman Signees

ASHEVILLE, N.C. - The UNC Asheville men's soccer program is happy to announce the addition of seven student-athletes to the program ahead of their Fall 2023 season today (Friday, June 30). Head Coach Mick Giordano and his staff have added these seven spanning from five different states and three different countries.

"This class possesses the correct blend of youthfulness, energy, and determination that we believe will help add to our program from day one," said Giordano. "The most valuable traits from these seven young men is their honesty to hard work and commitment to being a good human first. Our staff believes we have added amazing people, great students and excellent footballers that fit our style of play. I just want to say how fortunate I am for all the hard work our wonderful assistants, Joe LaCasto and Ronnie Hreha, have done with this freshman class. Joe truly has manned long hours with the legwork and dedication to securing high character individuals that will help our program on and off the field. He is turning into one of the best recruiting coordinators in the country with the efforts and sacrifices he makes daily for our program. I along with our program, truly am fortunate and lucky we have him here at UNC Asheville."

David Brown | Defender | Freshman | Louisville City Academy | Woodburn, KY
• Academy team ranked #1 in the country for ECNL League
• 2021 4^th Region MVP, 2021 First Team All-State
• 2022 invited to Louisville City FC first team pre-season, 2022 and 2023 Summer member of Louisville City FC u23 team
• 2022 First Team All-State, 2022 High School All-American Candidate
• Kentucky State Defensive Player of the Year Finalist
• 2023 member of USL2 club Tennessee SC

From Coach LaCasto: "David joins the program from an exceptionally good Louisville City team. He brings an extremely hard working and defensive mentality with him. His ceiling is very high and with his personality and work ethic; we believe he will do very well in our environment."

Aiden Gummer | Midfielder | Freshman | Charlotte Independence Academy | Indian Land, SC
• 2023 member of Charlotte SC UPSL team
• 4-time South Carolina All-Region Player of the Year
• 1-time South Carolina All-State Player of the Year – 2022

From Coach Giordano: "Aiden comes from a footballing family. It is in his blood and DNA but he truly loves the game with a passion that is second to none. His passing range and ability to unlock teams from the midfield are qualities our staff value highly. He loves a tackle and has no problem adding a bit of fire to the game."

Jackson Minneci | Midfielder | Freshman | Wilmington Hammerheads Academy | Wilmington, NC
• 2021 ECNL First Team All-Conference
• 2022 ECNL First Team All-Conference
• Team Captain for both Club and High School teams
• 2022 Fall High School season – 13 goals, 20 assists

From Coach Giordano: "Jackson is a player we are really excited about. He comes from an outstanding youth club with some of the best coaches and directors in the entire country. His ability to play multiple positions along with his pure tenacity will help continue to breed the blue-collar culture we have ingrained into our program."

Adrian Najarro | Goalkeeper | Freshman | South Florida Football Academy | Boca Raton, FL
• Goalkeeper from outside Miami, Florida
• Has been invited to train with Inter Miami FC Academy team
• 6 year starting GK for South Florida Football Academy in MLS Next/US Development Academy
• Helped South Florida Football Academy advance to the MLS Next playoffs Summer 2023 – first time ever for the club

From Coach LaCasto: "Adrian joins the program from MLS Next club South Florida Football Academy. Adrian has all the tools of a modern-day goalkeeper as he is extremely comfortable in possession and a very good shot stopper. He is passionate about the game and very eager to learn."

Jack Steel | Midfielder | Freshman | Aldershot Town FC | Surrey, United Kingdom
• Selected to Kenyan U15 National Team Pool 2019
• Selected for U19 England Independent School Boys Team
• Two-year scholar at Aldershot Town FC

From Coach LaCasto: "Jack is a dynamic midfielder who can play in a variety of roles. He is very tidy on the ball but also brings a lot of creativity with him. Jacks character and mentality throughout the recruiting process is something that has our staff very excited."

Isaac Wetzel | Forward | Freshman | BVB International Academy Pittsburgh | Freeport, PA
• 2022 AA All-WPIAL Selection
• 4x Pennsylvania All-Section Team
• 2021 Best XI Selection for USYS National Championships
• Club team currently ranked #1 in the country for USYS League, Captain of Club team

From Coach LaCasto: "Isaac joins the program from one of the best club teams in the country. Isaac has been to and competed for a USYS National Championship. On top of his attacking quality, he brings a hunger and competitive spirit to score goals. We are very excited about getting him on campus and seeing the impact he can have within our program."

Hunter Wilson | Defender | Freshman | Miramar Rangers | Wellington, New Zealand
• Made starting debut in New Zealand National League Men's Championship (2022)
• Miramar Rangers Capital Premier Men's Player of the Year and Players' Player of the Year (2022)
• Scots College Players' Player of the Year (2022)
• Captain of Scots College 1st XI (2022)

From Coach Giordano: "Hunter is a cultured center-half having made first team appearances at a young age. He loves to defend and is brave on the ball which we believe will fit out brand extremely well."

University of North Carolina Ashville Athletics

Men's Soccer Announces Seven Freshman Signees

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