Marshall University Athletics
Men's Soccer Announces 2004 Signees
3/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Men's Soccer Announces 2004 Signees
3/9/2004
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. - Marshall men's soccer coach Bob Gray has announced the signing of four players for next season.
The signing class includes Jira Cooley from Redmond, WA, Osric Flores from Everett, WA, Alan Rustamov of Kirkland, WA and Jeff Lenix, a native of Westerville, OH.
Cooley is a midfielder and plays for Parma of FC Alliance in Bothell. Parma is a Premier 1 U-18 team that finished 2nd in state in 2003 and is coached by former Seattle Pacific University standout Brad Elmenhurst. Cooley was the 2003 MVP for Redmond HS boy?s soccer, and was also a 2nd Team All-Kingco football player for the Mustangs in 2002.
Coach Gray is excited about Cooley's abilities. ?Jira is an explosive central midfielder who is an excellent athlete and is very good with the ball. Jira has the ability to have an immediate impact on our center midfield right away. He is capable of scoring goals and is a strong ball winner defensively.?
Flores is a teammate with Cooley on Parma and was among the top goal scorers. He also plays forward for Cascade High School and was the WesCo leading goal scorer in 2002 and was 1st Team All-WesCo. ?Osric is a proven goal-scorer who is very quick and skillful in tight spaces," Gray said. "Osric is fast enough to get behind the opponents defense and can create chances for others with his consistent work ethic. Osric is a likely candidate to start as a freshman.?
Rustamov played forward at Lake Washington High School where he led the team in scoring in 2001 and 2002. He was a 1st Team All-Kingco selection in 2001 and 2002, and played for the Tynecastle club in Lake Washington Youth Soccer Association. Rustamov will transfer from Bellevue Community College with 3 years of eligibility, as he did not play for BCC.
Coach Gray commented on Rustamov. ?We recruited Alan out of high school and are very excited to have him transfer. He has excellent feet and plays very well with his back to goal. He is a proven goal-scorer who works very hard and has an excellent understanding of defending in the attacking zone. Alan will have an excellent chance of starting right away.?
Jeff Lenix is a native of Westerville, Ohio. He was a high school All-American in 2003. His school, Westerville North High School, registered two Final 8 appearances and won the state title in 2003. That team was also ranked 14th in the nation.
Gray is excited about what Lenix brings to the table. "We are happy to get a players of his caliber. It shows the direction that this program is heading in when we can get a high school All-American and a player of his caliber."
