M. Soccer welcomes stellar recruits

Even without the Penn men's soccer team's newest recruiting class, the roster for the upcoming season looks more than promising.

While the 2001 Quakers (6-9-1 overall) were plagued by injuries in the second half of the season, limiting their chances for an Ivy crown, Penn -- with its roster in tact for the first half -- raced out to a 5-2-1 start and captured the Philadelphia Soccer 7 title. It was the first time in the history of the 23-year-old citywide championship that the Quakers had won the title.

Add in the fact that 10 healthy starters returned from last season's team, and the Quakers hardly looked ready to rebuild its roster. But a 2-5 conference record, even with injuries, is not something in which Penn coach Rudy Fuller takes pride.

There will be 11 new faces -- nine freshmen and two transfers -- in this year's team picture.

"From top to bottom, this is another quality group," Fuller said. "We were looking to get the best players we could get, and I feel like we did that."

While getting the best players was certainly one of Fuller's aims, the Quakers' headman also focused on addressing areas of weakness with his newest class: team speed and overall athleticism.

"We really focused on those two attributes [speed and athleticism]," Fuller said. "We felt we were a little lacking in those areas and needed to improve that."

Headlining this year's recruiting class are a pair of defenders, Justin Estrada (Brandon, Fla.) and Erik Violante (Feucherolles, France). Though Penn already possesses a deep and talented back line -- highlighted by seniors Nathan Kennedy and William Lee -- the freshmen duo is expected to make an immediate impact.

"Both Erik and Justin have played at a very high level," Fuller said. "They are talented and join an already talented group, but I expect them to compete hard for positions."

Estrada was a member of the Under-17 National Pool in 2001 and has played for the Region III Olympic Development Team. A star at Jesuit High School in Tampa, Estrada helped lead his club team to the 2001 National Championship.

A talented athlete, Estrada was also selected by the Los Angeles Dodgers in the 45th round of the 2002 Major League Baseball Draft -- an opportunity he passed on to play soccer at Penn.

As for Violante, he too has starred in the ODP circuit, playing for both the Region I ODP Team and the ODP Europe squad, the latter of which he had been a three-year captain. No stranger to the world of top competitive soccer, Violante has played for the Paris Saint-German youth team in France.

It's not only the Quakers who expect big things from Estrada and Violante, however. On Aug. 27, each was identified as freshmen to watch by College Soccer News.

Joining the two heralded recruits in Penn's back four will be Mike Lenahan, a transfer from Miami (Ohio) University and former teammate of Penn's David Maier on the Ohio North ODP team, and Justin Golden(Chester, N.J.).

In the midfield, the Quakers have brought in four new players -- Jonathan Abelson (Scarsdale, N.Y.), Brent Plumley(Holden, Mass./ University of Massachusets), John Rhodes(Mendham, N.J.) and Andrew Fenwick (Washington, D.C.) -- to join the deepest position on the squad.

Plumley, a transfer from Massachusets, appeared in 19 of 22 games last season for the Minutemen and is arguably the most talented player in the group.

"Plumley is a slashing-type player," Fuller said. "He works really hard and I expect him to compete right away."

Up front, Penn has added another speedster -- Richard Brushett (Silver Spring, Md.) -- to, at least on paper, complement sophomores Maier and Joe Klein. While Brushett is listed as a forward, there's a possibility that he may be seeing action at other positions in the lineup.

"He's about as good of an athlete as I've had at Penn," Fuller said. "He's got exceptional speed and he could play a number of different positions."

Rounding out Penn's recruits are Bert Lockwood, a goalkeeper from IMG Academy in Brandenton, Fla., and Felipe Rios, a Colombia native, who attracted attention while playing high school soccer in Miami.

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