Website Version ArtMobile Version Art

No. 19 Men's Soccer 2024 Positional Previews: Goalkeepers and Defenders

by Ryan Ladika

ORLANDO – As the No. 19 UCF men’s soccer team readies for its second season as a member of the Sun Belt Conference this fall, the squad will lean on a robust level of returning experience within its defensive corps complemented by a handful of new faces.

The Black and Gold bring 13 players who are rostered as either defenders or goalkeepers into the new campaign, including five newcomers and eight returning Knights from a season ago.

UCF in 2023 authored a strong defensive campaign en route to its second-place finish in the Sun Belt table, limiting its opposition to two or fewer goals in each of its first 15 matches of the season, paving way for a final team goals-against average of just 1.233. The Knights recorded four clean sheets, as well as an additional five matches with just one goal surrendered that aided in the squad recording a +13 goal differential, good for a share of 35th-best in the nation.

GOALKEEPERS

Not unlike last year, head coach Scott Calabrese will once again bring a relatively young, in terms of collegiate experience, group of goalkeepers into the new season. Junior Juanvi Muñoz is the lone Knight netminder with prior Division I experience and will enter his third season donning the Black and Gold.

The Valencia, Spain, native enjoyed a career season throughout his 2023 sophomore slate, producing single-season bests in appearances (15), starts (15), minutes played (1349:29), goals allowed (17), goals-against average (1.134), save percentage (.734), wins (9) and shutouts (3) as an encore to his strong 2022 debut.

Muñoz became the second Knight to earn Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week honors last season after he notched a clean sheet against the Kentucky Wildcats Sept. 29, making a trio of saves. The effort factored into the then-sophomore yielding two or fewer goals in 14 of his 15 starts, and one or fewer goals in 10 of those 15 overall.

With aid from his defensive front, Muñoz also helped run UCF’s scoreless goals-against streak to 314 minutes and 45 seconds between UCF’s 1-0 defeat at then-No. 1 Marshall Sept. 23 and its 2-1 win at Old Dominion Oct. 14.

Joining Muñoz between the goalposts are returning redshirt-freshmen Shane Wright and Pablo Ossabal, as well as incoming freshman netminder Timo Haböck. Wright and Ossabal both spent the 2023 campaign in Orlando and redshirted after neither saw match action, while Haböck joins UCF from Frankfurt am Main, Hesse, Germany and was a member of the highest possible league with FSV Frankfurt, U17 Bundesliga.

DEFENDERS

Calabrese and his staff bring nine defenders into the 2024 campaign to play in front of the squad’s goalkeeping tandem, featuring five returning faces and four newcomers.

Fifth year seniors Anderson Rosa and Jonas Fritschi lead the squad in returning experience, followed by junior Timothy Arias and sophomores Ron Ben Dakon and Arne Michaelis. Joining UCF for the first time are fifth year Alex Smith, junior Daisuke Shinko, sophomore Gabi Velez and freshman Gwendal Degorce.

Rosa represents a key leadership figure in entering his fifth season as a Knight, as he brings with him a streak of 60 consecutive appearances and starts dating back to his freshman debut Feb. 6, 2021.

A second-round pick by the Colorado Rapids in the MLS SuperDraft 2024 last December, Rosa also garnered selections to the United Soccer Coaches’ All-Southeast Region Second Team, Sun Belt’s All-Conference Second Team, and Sun Belt’s All-Conference Preseason Team in 2023. He started each of UCF’s 16 matches, setting single-season career bests in goals scored (3), points (7) and shot attempts (18), and tied his previous season high with five shots on goal.

MS_CK_4953_090123_20594603 (1)Anderson Rosa | Photo by: Conor Kvatek

In addition to aiding the Knights in limiting their opposition to two or fewer goals in 15 of the squad’s 16 total matches, Rosa also scored his first career penalty kick goal against Brown Sept. 9, just weeks before he netted his first collegiate game-winning goal at South Carolina Oct. 22.

Fritschi, who also figures to see time as a midfielder throughout the 2024 slate, appeared in eight matches, including six starts, throughout his first collegiate season, totaling 517 minutes before he was sidelined due to injury. The Donaueschingen, Germany, native notched one point in his eight appearances, an assist on Robbie Soronellas’ game-tying goal in the 69th minute of the Knights’ eventual 3-1 win over NC State Sept. 1.

Fritschi also managed seven total shot attempts, including four on goal, a season ago, including a pair against then-No. 11 FIU Sept. 5 and Georgia Southern Oct. 7.

Smith brings to Orlando four years of experience helping anchor Georgia Southern’s back line, most recently starting each of Georgia Southern’s matches in 2023. He paced the squad in minutes played (1488) while notching two points that came on his goal scored against UNC Asheville Aug. 27.

The Jacksonville, Florida, native also aided in limiting the Eagles opposition to two or fewer goals on 14 occasions throughout the last year. Overall, Smith has made 34 collegiate appearances over his four seasons, totaling three goals scored after he netted a pair during the 2022 slate.

Velez represents UCF’s second defender transfer with prior Division I playing time, having spent his freshman 2023 campaign with the NC State Wolfpack. Velez appeared in 15 matches, including 12 starts, during his lone season in Raleigh, seeing 953 minutes of action and tallying a pair of assists to record his first two collegiate points. Prior to the commencement of his college career, the Weston, Florida, native was a selection for the U15 US National Team camp and also played with Inter Miami CF.

Shinko joins the Knights on the heels of a two-year career with Coffeyville Community College in Coffeyville, Kansas during the 2022-23 and 2023-24 seasons. The Kobe City, Japan, native appeared in 35 total matches with the Red Ravens, starting each of his 35 appearances and tallying eight goals and one assist to total 17 points.

Shinko set personal season highs in appearances and starts (19), goals (6), points (12), shot attempts (16) and shots on goal (12) throughout the 2023-24 slate, and on the defensive end helped his team in limiting its opposition to two or fewer goals 17 times in 19 total matches a year ago.

Michaelis made his collegiate debut with the Knights last season, appearing in 11 matches, including five starts, and totaled 504 minutes of action. Prior to his UCF tenure, the Krefeld, Germany, native played in the fourth tier of German soccer, Regionalliga West, as a member of Borussia Mönchengladbach II.

Arias enters his third season with the Black and Gold, having appeared in 23 contests, including a season-high 14 in 2023, throughout his first two years in Orlando. He racked up 1250 minutes, also a season high, last year, and notched his first collegiate point in UCF’s 2-2 draw against then-No. 4 West Virginia Sept. 15, assisting Lucca Dourado’s game-tying goal in the 22nd minute.

The then-sophomore also produced single-season career bests in shot attempts (8) and shots on goal (3) a season ago, including a career-high four shot attempts in UCF’s Sun Belt Conference quarterfinal tilt with the South Carolina Gamecocks.

Ben Dakon appeared in four matches during his freshman debut season with the Knights last year, totaling 43 minutes of action. He registered his first career shot attempt in UCF’s 5-0 win over the Coastal Carolina Chanticleers, and also made appearances against then-No. 9 Clemson Aug. 24, Stetson Aug. 27 and then-No. 11 FIU Sept. 5.

Degorce, a native of Lyon, France, joins the squad as a freshman in 2024. With EM Lyon Business School in 2022, Degorce and his squad emerged victorious in the 2022 Coupe Gambardella, and were also a U19 conference champion that season as well.

UP NEXT

The Knights prepare for their final tuneup prior to the commencement of the 2024 regular season, when the squad will host the Stetson Hatters at the UCF Soccer Complex in preseason exhibition action Aug. 15. The Black and Gold will then welcome the Mercer Bears to Orlando for the team’s season-opener Aug. 22.

FOLLOW THE KNIGHTS

Follow UCF men’s soccer on X (@UCF_MSoccer), Instagram (@UCF.MSoccer) and Facebook (/UCFMensSoccer).

GET THE APP

Never miss any UCF Knights news from your favorite teams by downloading the free UCF Knights app right to your iOS or Android devices. The app provides personalized information for men’s and women’s teams, scores, schedules, loyalty programs and breaking news. Click here to download the app now.