SAN FRANCISCO – University of San Francisco head men's soccer coach Eddie Soto announced the signing of 11 student-athletes to National Letters of Intent: Sandro Bradara, Marcus Simmons, Eden Ben Hemo, Matthew Korpontinos, Harrison Kepp, Diego Solano, Armand Bagramyan, Cameron Martin, Zyan Andrade, Ashish Chattha and Jake Serpa. This class is a combination of transfers and freshman who will be competing for the Dons this fall.
USF welcomes three local products: Chattha from Fremont, Calif., Kepp from Oakland, and Serpa from San Jose to the program next year as freshman.
Chattha comes to the Hilltop after lettering in soccer at American High School, while also spending four years playing for his club team the Silicon Valley Soccer Academy. The midfielder was named to the TopDrawer Soccer 2016 DA Winter Showcase U16 Best XI and 2017 DA Academy Showcase U16 Best XI.
Kepp comes to USF by way of Bishop O'Dowd High School. He was a four-time letter winner in soccer for the Dragons. The team captain helped guide his team to a 2018 NCS Championship. On the club side, the defensive stalwart was a member of the Santa Clara Sporting team that won the Region IV Championship, as well as finishing third at the US Youth Soccer National Championship. His Club has been ranked No. 1 in country for the past two years.
Serpa joins USF following a successful four-year varsity career at Archbishop Mitty High School. The midfielder and two-time team captain, led his team to a 2016 CCS Open Division Championship, while earning First-Team All-WCAL and Second Team All-CCS in his career. For club, Serpa has captained the No. 1 nationally ranked Santa Clara Sporting Green to a Surf Cup Championship, Sporting Invitational Championship and Cal North State Cup championship in 2017, and a U18 championship at the Dallas Cup in 2018.
Joining the Dons from out of California will be Solano, Martin and Andrade.
Martin is a by-product of the Seattle Sounders FC Academy team. The Bothell, Wash. native, plays midfielder and was given the co-captain's armband. He helped lead the Sounders to the US Soccer Development Academy National Playoffs in each of the last four seasons. He made his professional debut playing for Seattle Sounders FC 2 in July against the Real Monarchs.
Solano will switch coasts to join the Dons, after graduating from Bishop O'Connell High School in Arlington, Va. In his senior season, the midfielder was given the captains armband and led the side to a No. 1 Virginia state ranking before joining the DC United Academy's U19 USSDA team.
Andrade comes to the Hilltop by way of Centro Educacional Podium in Brazil. He has played five seasons at Botafogo de Futebol e Regatas in the Brasileirao Serie A, helping his team to a win in the Zayed Cup in Dubai, Brazil's Cup (2015), Brazilian Cup (2016) and the Carioca League (2016).
There will be three Division I transfers joining the Dons this season in Bradara, Simmons and Ben Hemo.
Bradara transfers from UNC Greensboro where he played one full season for the Spartans. He saw action in 11 matches and scored a goal from the penalty spot. Prior to that, Bradara attended Herman-Gundert Schule in Claw, Germany, and played for SV Sundhausen and SV Stuttgarter Kickers.
Switching West Coast Conference schools will be Simmons, who joins the Dons after two-years at Saint Mary's. During his time with the Gaels, Simmons made 13 appearances. Prior to joining Saint Mary's, Simmons played three-seasons of varsity soccer at Lick Wilmerding High School before playing for the San Jose Earthquakes in the US Soccer Development Academy.
Ben Hemo joins USF from Drexel University, where he played one season and earned Philadelphia Soccer Six All-Rookie Team. He started all 12 of his appearances for the Dragons, logging 1,046 minutes. Prior to Drexel, Ben Hemo played for the Israel National U17 League where he earned three-time team MVP. He served two years in the Israeli Navy before joining Drexel.
Our final two transfers coming in the fall are Matthew Korpontinos and Armand Bagramyan. Korpontinis attended Seattle University as a freshman before moving on to West Valley College. The forward played in 10 games for the Vikings, scoring two goals and adding an assist during his one season.
Armand Bagramyan joins USF from UC Santa Barbara making 7 appearances in 9 games his freshman year. Prior to joining UCSB, Bagramyan played three seasons of varsity soccer at La Canada High School with a career total 87 goals, and 44 assists. While in high school, Bagramyan earned All-CIF Southern Section Division V First-Team honors, as well as Rio Hondo offensive MVP.
Be sure to see these new players, and the rest of the Dons, take to the field for the 2018 season opener on Aug. 24th against Cal State Northridge at Negoesco Stadium.
