Nick Maglasang - St. Louis, Missouri - Midfielder - St. Louis High School - Played club with Scott Gallagher - Missouri Class 3 Defensive Player of the Year - NSCAA High School All-American.

 

Ryan Moses - Springfield, Missouri - Forward - Kickapoo High School -  Played for Springfield Soccer Club - Honorable Mention All-State - Can play up-top or in the back - Good touch on ball.

 

Devon Newport - Springfied, Missouri - Defender - Glendale High School - Played for Springfield Soccer Club - Named Missour Class Three Co-Offensive Player of the Year.  All-State selection.

 

Mark Pais - St. Louis, Missouri - Goalkeeper - Ladue Horton High School - Played club for Scott Gallagher - U.S. National Team Pool Player - Third Team All-Metro Selection. 

 

Mike Roach - St. Louis, Missouri - Forward/Midfielder - Chaminade High School - Indiana University - Transfer in from Indiana with three years of eligibility.  2006 NSCAA All-American.

 

Michael Robson - St. Louis, Missouri - Midfielder - Chaminade High School - Played club with Scott Gallagher - Defensive oriented -  Senior season cut short due to leg injury - Solid player.

 

Alex Sweetin - Overland Park, Kansas - Midfielder - Rockhurst High School - Missouri Class Three Player of the Year - Contributes on both sides of the ball - NSCAA All-American.

 

Jordan Wolff - Anaheim Hills, California - Midfielder/Forward - Villa Park High School - Played club with the Pateadores - Great speed and touch on the ball - Very effective in the attacking third. 

Hartford -  Two Star Class Ranking -  The Hawks don’t need a large 2009 recruiting class since they lose no one from the 2008 squad due to graduation.  Forward Andreas Blamo was the only senior listed on the 2008 roster and he took a red-shirt due to a knee injury and therefore will be available in 2009.  Hartford head coach Dan Gaspar has announced the addition of three freshmen recruits.  Two should add defensive depth while one will help add to the attack.  In the past Gaspar has leaned heavily upon transfers from the community college ranks to obtain seasoned players.  The additional experience is a plus but some would say that the shorter term players make it much more difficult to create the team chemistry needed to develop and sustain a winning program.  With so many experienced players scheduled to return in 2009 the Hawks appear to have the pieces in place to field what should be a competitive side.  Last year they were 7-8-3 overall with a 3-4-1 mark in America East play which was good for a fifth place finish and the second consecutive year in which the program qualified for the conference tournament.  Senior Carlos Villa (12g, 3a), who transferred in last year after playing two seasons at San Jacinto College, returns up-top to lead the Hartford offense.  Villa was a First Team All-America East selection last year.  Everyone knows that Villa is an impact player and a very capable finisher.  Blamo, who played at Manchester Community College before becoming a Hawk, was an All-America East Second Team selection in 2007 when he netted seven goals and contributed four assists.  With Blamo back on the pitch along with Villa,  the potential exists for a very explosive Hartford attack.  The Hartford midfield looks to be deep heading into the 2009 campaign.  Senior Ivan Guarin (2g, 1a), who transferred in last year after two very successful seasons at Herkimer Community College, returns after a very successful 2008 campaign in which he was named a First Team All-America East selection.  Other returning linkmen include seniors Henry Wong (0g, 1a) and Kevin Hall (0g, 1a), juniors Sam Groves (1g, 3a) and Jamie Thomas and sophomore Patrick Boucher (2g, 2a).  Look for Boucher in particular to play a more active role in the Hartford attack in 2009.  Senior Cedomir Tomcic, juniors Anthony Buehler and Bojan Delibasic, and sophomore Jorge Rodriguez who had a very productive freshman campaign return to provide Gaspar what should be a very solid backline.  Senior Nemad Cudic who played in twelve contests last year and sophomore Luke Citriniti who saw action in eight games return to give the Hawks two battle tested netminders.  It might be somewhat simplistic to say that the Hartford offense in 2009 will go as far as Villa can take it.  A more realistic assessment might be that Villa will continue to be a positive force for the Hawks on the offensive side of the ball but the ability of Hartford to win the close games that eluded them last year is going to be dependent upon the capability of Blamo, Boucher and others to add balance to the Hawk attack.  There is no one single impact player on the defensive side of the ball so Hartford’s defensive effectiveness in 2009 is going to be predicated upon a collective and organized effort.  This team has great potential in 2009.  Still, they will need improvement from top to bottom in order to have a chance to reach a total  of ten or more overall wins and to climb ahead of Boston University, Albany, Binghamton, and Vermont in America East play. 

 

Kevin Lewis - Pawcatuck, Connecticut - Midfielder/Defender - Stonington High School - Played for the Oakwood Soccer Club in the U.S. Development Academy - Connecticut and Region I ODP.

 

Ben Poppen - Ankeny, Iowa - Defender - Ankeny High School - Played for the Des Moines Menace of the Premier Development League - Member Iowa ODP team - Member Region II Camp. 

 

James Stamopoulos - Mississauga, Ontario, Canada - Forward - Member of the Toronto Futbol Club’s Academy team.  Member of the Canadian U-16 National Team in 2007.