After three weeks of the NCAA soccer season, a number of Sounders Academy products have carved out important roles in their collegiate teams. Moreover, several players from last year’s U-18 Academy squad continue to impress with prominent roles for top Division I programs.
Junior striker David Olsen opened his goal scoring account for the 2016 campaign in Seattle University’s narrow 2-1 loss against Dartmouth. Last year’s top scorer with sixteen goals handed the Redhawks the lead in the fourth minute when his driven shot deflected off a defender and flew past the goalkeeper.
Yoshi Chaffin followed up his man-of-the-match performance against Cal State Fullerton with a buccaneering display in a 1-0 win over UC Irvine. Chaffin pulled the strings going forward for Santa Clara, carving out chances for teammates with his clever dribbling and passing. The offensive pressure eventually told for the Broncos as Irvine conceded an own goal in the 65th minute.
Second year defender MacArthur Clarke has emerged as an integral player for No. 13 ranked San Diego State University. The Aztecs earned their fourth consecutive shutout victory on the weekend over Memphis. After redshirting his freshman year, Clarke – a Puyallup native and Emerald Ridge High School alum – has started every match for SDSU this season. The sophomore center back captained the U-18 Sounders Academy squad in 2015.
First year defender Nick Hinds continues to cement his place in No. 10 Akron’s starting XI with impressive performances. The left back tallied his first collegiate assist in the 13th minute of a 2-0 victory over Oregon State. Hinds took his marker 1v1 on the dribble down the left channel, showed a burst of speed to create space and whipped a cross into the box that was knocked down for a tap in.
In the next match against No. 5 UC Santa Barbara, Hinds started the match and went the full 90 minutes in a 2-0 victory. Akron head coach Jared Embeck lauded the defensive discipline of Hinds and the rest of the backline after the massive win. The former Sounders Academy standout has played in all six matches for the Zips this year, earning four starts.
Three Sounders Academy products garnered significant minutes for the University of Washington Huskies in a narrow loss away to Dartmouth. Both Handwalla Bwana and Henry Wingo started the match and created several chances going forward. Freshman midfielder John Magnus came off the bench and nearly found the equalizer with a header that sailed just over the crossbar.
Freshman striker Maliq Cooper produced another highlight reel assist for UNLV in their lopsided 4-1 loss to Saint Mary’s. With the Rebels trailing 1-0, Cooper supplied a moment of magic to level the score. Posting up his defender in the corner, Cooper feigned a pass to his teammate before turning the ball, nutmegged his defender and whipped in a pinpoint cross for his teammate to head home.
