OKLAHOMA CITY – Coming off its winningest season since joining the NAIA in 2008, the Mid-America Christian men's soccer program continued to add elite level talent toward its pursuit of an NAIA National Championship as the Evangels signed 10 players to join the squad for the upcoming 2022 season.
Overall, the incoming class consists of six collegiate transfers as well as four players that competed at the international club level.
Adding some offensive firepower will be Ridwane Boukraa, a 5-9 junior midfielder that is transferring in from a powerhouse NJCCAA program in Arizona Western. Last season, Boukraa helped lead the Matadors to the NJCAA Division I National Championship match as AWC finished the campaign with a 21-2 record. On the squad that averaged 4.3 goals per game, Boukraa finished third on the team in goals with nine while also dishing out eight assists for a total of 25 points. In his three-year Matadors career, Boukraa scored a total of 22 goals to go with 21 assists.
"We are very excited to bring Ridwane to MACU," said MACU men's soccer head coach Danny Frid. "He is a proven winner in college soccer in leading his team to the NJCAA national final while becoming an All-American along the way."
One of four international club prospects who is expecting to make a big impact on the front line, Georg Westerlund makes his way to MACU after competing against some of the best talent in his home country of Finland. The 5-10 forward from Helsinki comes to MACU after competing for SJK Seinajoki FC. In his time competing internationally, Westerlund was a proven elite striker, even scoring nine goals during the 2019-20 season for his previous club, SJK Akatemia.
"Georg has an extremely high level background, who is a big addition to our program," said Frid. "He is a proven goal-scorer who works extremely hard off the ball. We are excited to be working with him."
Another club star who is expecting to turn some heads is a 6-0 midfielder from Benasaguil, Spain, Diego Real joins the Evangels squad after a stellar playing career in his home country. Before coming to MACU, Real competed for FC Villarreal C as well as the Villarreal U19 club.
"Diego is coming from a top level in Spain," remarked Frid. "His ability on the ball will help us with the way we want to play. We are very excited to have him on-board and cannot wait to work with him."
In shoring up the backline, Ricardo Sepulveda is one of two Barton Community College transfers that will look to make an immediate impact. The 6-0 defender from Chile is a strong competitor that can make contributions both offensively and defensively as he scored five goals and five assists in three seasons competing for the Cougars.
"Ricky joined us in January of this year and has tons of quality," said Frid. "He is a hard-nosed defender who will continue to develop on the ball with us. We cannot be more excited that he is with us here at MACU."
In joining his Barton College teammate, Cedric Morales Sampson will also look to add some quality depth to the Evangels' midfield. The 5-10 Mexico City, Mexico was able to push across four goals and tally five dimes in his three-year career with the Cougars.
"Cedric is another quality player that joined us in the spring," Frid stated. "Unfortunately, he did not play most of the spring games due to injury, but he showed tons of quality in practice and the game he did play. His hard work, determination and grit is something that will help our program tremendously."
A player that has shown to provide striking ability from the back row, Kareem Williams comes to MACU from NOC-Tonkawa. A 5-11 defender from Kingston, Jamaica, Williams tallied nine goals and eight assists in three seasons for the Mavericks while leading the 18th-ranked NJCAA Division I club to a 13-4-2 record in 2021.
"Kareem was another spring signing that joined us in January," said Frid. "He is a very humble young man who has tons of defensive and attacking qualities. We are happy he is here at MACU."
Another Arizona Western standout that will join the program for the 2022 season, Francois Geris-Rey is a 5-7 sophomore midfielder that played some high-quality minutes for the fifth-ranked NJCAA Division I program. In the 2021 season, Geris-Rey saw action in 18 games and made four starts while tallying a pair of goals and a pair of assists for the prolific offensive club.
"Francois played a vital role in his junior college's record season," Frid added. "He is a very technical player who suits our style of play. We are certainly excited to have him this year."
A transfer from another strong NAIA program, Maxim Ngom comes to MACU after competing for Olivet Nazarene during the 2021 season. The 6-5 midfielder appeared in 15 games and made 14 starts for the Tigers last season, helping lead ONU to a Chicagoland Collegiate Athletic Conference Championship and an appearance in the NAIA Opening Round while finishing with a 16-4-1 record.
"Maxim will add power, size and quality to our team," stated Frid. "He is a proven elite athlete at the collegiate level in America and we are thrilled to be adding his talents to our squad."
Another European club soccer prodigy that will be bringing his talents to MACU, Kelt Jager will be bringing some strong size to the Evangels defense in 2022. The 6-2 defender from Emmeloord, Netherlands hails from the Almere City Football Club where he was a proven defenseman for the club.
"Kelt is a very mature, professional personality that will add great quality to our program," said Frid. "His quality in possession and defensive ability will improve our defensive side of the field. We are very excited he is on-board."
Rounding out the signing class, the Evangels went to the other side of the world for another great club player in Akira Ono. A 5-10 midfielder from Yokohama, Japan, Ono comes to MACU after a stellar playing career with Tokyo S Reyes FC, as he helped lead his squad to the Japan Town Club Cup Championship.
"Akira is a player that is very good with the ball at his feet," remarked Frid. "He is a very humble young man who we think will develop extremely well with us. We are thrilled to have him here with us."
Mid-America Christian will start off the season with a home scrimmage against Rose State at 7 p.m. on Wednesday, Aug. 10 before officially kicking off the regular season on Saturday, Aug. 20 against Bethel (Kan.) at 7:30 p.m. at the Dill Soccer Field.
