O'Leary connection yields five players for Griffins
Jefferson Hagen / MacEwan Athletics
A wave of talented players out of Archbishop O'Leary Soccer Academy is headed MacEwan's way this summer.
Griffins head coach Adam Loga, on Friday, announced that O'Leary midfielders Christian Kosmin, Chris Anastacio and Mike Ho, goalkeeper Dory Elliott, and centreback Michael Friesen have committed to MacEwan University in time for the 2017 Canada West season.
"Obviously, we wanted all of them and we're lucky they all decided to join each other," said Loga. "I think the biggest thing was the (O'Leary instructors) – Justin Ongaro, Jason Miniaci and John Pegg – are all friends with our staff. They're coaches that we trust. We know they're qualified.
"They don't just coach the player in tactics and techniques. They coach the player how to be a human being, and they're all great kids."
Character has been high on Loga's wish list since he took over at the helm of the program a year ago with a mission of bringing a winning culture to MacEwan.
Kosmin certainly knows how to win, having been a part of a national championship with Edmonton Scottish SC in 2016.
"He comes with a wealth of experience for a younger guy," said Loga of Kosmin, who has also been a youth provincial champion multiple times. "He's a national champion at the men's level. He's played within the national training centre and was in the national player pool as a youth player.
"He's hard-nosed," Loga added. "He gets stuck in. He'll bring a presence to the midfield with intensity and some tenacity. He's a great addition."
Anastacio will also add plenty of elbow grease to the Griffins' midfield, as well as a history of winning. He's a three-time Team Alberta member (U13, U14, U15) and won a national silver medal during his youth career.
"He's an engine, just a soldier in the middle of the park," said Loga. "He works hard and will cover every blade of grass on the pitch.
"Again, just most importantly, he's just a great human being. He hasn't even scratched the surface of his potential, just with the work and commitment and dedication he puts in day in and day out."
And in Ho, the Griffins may have found a top prospect who has fallen through the cracks. Perhaps due to his smaller size (5-foot-5) he's a bit of a secret in the university soccer recruiting ranks, but has the skills to be a really solid U SPORTS player.
"I think he's going to have a huge career with us. He was overlooked, I think, in his youth," said Loga, who has the O'Leary staff to thank for bringing him to his attention. "He's a smaller, quick player. Not a lot of people know about him. We're very lucky. He's got so much potential. He's coming in a year younger. He's only 16 (but will be 17 before the season starts).
"To see his awareness and vision and composure on the ball at such a young age … and again, nobody knows him."
In goal, Elliott has a chance to earn big minutes right out the gate in his freshman season. His pedigree is certainly impressive: three-year starting goalkeeper with Team Alberta, two-time participant at the national youth team training camp and a former member of the Vancouver Whitecaps Residency Academy.
But when the Whitecaps released him, he stopped playing.
"After he was released from the Whitecaps, he just took a year off – just fell out of love with the game," noted Loga. "He didn't play this whole last year. Again, Justin Ongaro reached out to me and I gave him a call. He was a bit apprehensive when I first called, but by the end of the phone call, he was super excited to be back on the pitch.
"We've got high hopes for him, for sure. It's nice to just see a player come back to the game like that, especially when he is so talented and was such a high prospect a few years back," he added. "You have a guy with his credentials and he's only 18 years old. I think the sky's the limit. He's got such a high ceiling. We're looking forward to working with him."
Friesen checks in at 6-foot-2, giving the Griffins some much-needed size to defend the bigger attackers they often come up against. If not for an ACL tear, he might have gone to the NCAA, so potentially the Griffins have a gem when he gets healthy.
"He's a big centre back – safe and clean on the ball," said Loga. "He's coming back from an ACL tear, so we'll just be patient with him. He's a big body presence who had interest from the States. Just a simple and clean centre back – big and strong."
The five O'Leary players are the first announced in MacEwan's 2017 men's soccer recruiting class. The Griffins are aiming for big improvements in the Canada West table after a growth season in 2016 had them finish 2-11-3 in the standings, out of the playoff picture.
