The college soccer season will be here in no time. Therefore, it’s time to look at Fort Lewis College men’s soccer’s offseason acquisitions the coaches hope will help produce another terrific season.
College athletics have changed in the last decade. For decades, it was rare for players to transfer and college coaches’ offseason acquisitions were only freshmen. Now, because of the transfer portal, immediate eligibility after transferring and players earning money from NIL (Name, Image Likeness), players are transferring more than ever before. Because of this, college coaches must recruit the transfer portal as well as high school.
With all this movement, it’s important to review the new faces so fans know what players are on rosters. Therefore, The Durango Herald will look at each FLC fall team’s offseason acquisitions from high school and the transfer portal.
Skyhawks men’s soccer had another fantastic season in 2024, finishing 14-4-6 overall and 7-2-1 in the Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference. FLC lost in the conference tournament championship game to CSU Pueblo, 2-1, before losing to CSU Pueblo in the NCAA tournament quarterfinals, 1-0.
FLC brings in 14 new players (11 freshmen and three transfers) to potentially help the Skyhawks make their third consecutive RMAC tournament championship game, NCAA tournament and first NCAA tournament final four since 2011.
“We're excited,” FLC men’s soccer coach David Oberholtzer said. “We got pretty much everybody in town, almost everybody arrived last weekend and we started training on Monday. We've got three guys who are still waiting to secure visas. Then once that happens, hopefully we'll get them here soon.”
Oberholtzer and his staff have a huge advantage this year with their newcomers because of the Costa Rica trip the team is taking.
The team will be in Costa Rica from July 22-29 and will play against three professional teams, one first division team and two second division teams. It’s a great opportunity for the new players and the returners to create chemistry.
Oberholtzer said it’s the first time the program has taken a foreign trip like this since 2005. Because the team is taking the trip, the NCAA allows FLC to train two weeks prior to the departure for the trip. It’s a big difference compared to the August 18 date, which is the official start of preseason.
“It's such a huge advantage,” Oberholtzer said. “I don't know how many other Division II men's soccer programs are taking an international trip this summer, but we're going to be one of very few that are going to be training at this time of year. We basically have a six-week head start on everybody.”
The six-week head start gives Oberholtzer and his staff even more time to evaluate their offseason acquisitions. The coaching staff didn’t prioritize a position in the offseason because FLC lost a talented group of seniors who played defense, midfield and forward.
Oberholtzer and his staff were focused on acquiring talent that would continue to push the program forward and continue to have the Skyhawks be one of the top Division II programs in the country. They wanted players who could come in and not drop the play level, character and work ethic from the departing seniors.
Seven of the 14 new players are foreign. There are three players from France, two originally from Portugal (one is a college transfer), one player from Costa Rica and one from Nigeria.
Oberholtzer has a lot of contacts in Europe who work in agencies that try and get European players to colleges in America. It’s a symbiotic relationship; the contacts and Oberholtzer need each other to do their jobs and are in frequent conversations about players. Some contacts have sent Oberholtzer multiple players from France over the years. He also has a contact who’s sent him players from Mexico and Portugal.
One of the French players Oberholtzer is really excited about is Lorenz Guintini, from Avignon, France. The 5-foot-7-inch, 152-pound forward has played at a high level in France and should help the Skyhawks score and create scoring chances.
“He’s a really technical, sharp and clinical player,” Oberholtzer said about Guintini. “He's got some cleverness to the way he moves and can shift defenders. He’s really clever in front of goal and can finish a in a variety of ways ... Typically, what we see from guys playing at his level, it comes over and translates really well to our level.”
Another player Oberholtzer is excited about is Raul Baptista Filipe, a sophomore originally from Santa Maria de Feira, Portugal, who played at Division II Wingate University in North Carolina last season.
Oberholtzer likes Baptista Filipe’s creativity at the center midfield position and he likes that Baptista Filipe has a year of college experience.
Quadri Edun might have the longest journey to get to FLC out of the offseason acquisitions. The Lagos, Nigeria, native is a 5-foot-10-inch defender who is still waiting on a visa. Oberholtzer has his fingers crossed that it all works out because he thinks Edun could be a very special player and could contribute right away.
“He's got an incredible amount of athleticism and great pace to be able to track things down,” Oberholtzer said about Edun. “He’s extremely tough and but then he's also got a lot of great quality on the ball, which suits us really well in terms of the way we want to play when we have the ball. He's going to give us a different dimension than we had last year, but also gives us a level of toughness from a defensive standpoint.”
One local player with a great story, who Oberholtzer is bringing in is Uriel Garcia from Farmington. The 6-foot-6-inch, 209-pound defender starred at Piedra Vista High School.
Garcia came to FLC’s high school camp four years ago and stood out physically. Oberholtzer and the staff have been tracking him the past few years and the staff and Garcia felt FLC was a good fit for him.
The Skyhawks kick off their 2025 season with a home game against Lubbock Christian University on Sept. 4 at 4:30 p.m.
Be on the lookout for a season preview next month.
bkelly@durangoherald.com
