Wake Forest Athletics
Muuss Announces 2017 Signing Class
6/28/2017 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeMSoccer)
WINSTON-SALEM, N.C. -- Wake Forest head men's soccer coach Bobby Muuss announced the team's 2017 signing class on Wednesday, featuring nine incoming student-athletes.
"I couldn't be more excited to welcome these young men to Winston-Salem," Muuss said. "They have already been successful in their lives on and off the pitch, and we're confident they will keep up the elite tradition for Wake Forest soccer."
The recruiting class is ranked No. 3 in the nation both by TopDrawerSoccer and College Soccer News.
Machop Chol | 6-2, 150 | Midfielder | Tucker, Ga. | Southwest DeKalb HS | Atlanta United FC
Background:
Rated as the No. 115 recruit in the country by TopDrawerSoccer, including the No. 11 prospect from the South Atlantic region ... Won the 2017 U.S. Soccer Regional title and was a 2015 Super Y National finalist Graduate of the U.S. Soccer Development Academy, playing for Atlanta United FC under coach Tony Annan, scoring 11 goals in 28 games in 2016-17 ... Chose Wake Forest over Clemson and Georgia Southern.
Personal:
Full name is Machop Malual Chol ... Born on Nov. 14, 1998 in Sudan ... Son of Angilina Mayik & Malual Machop.
Muuss' Take:
"Machop is an exciting attacking player who has a great combination of technique and athleticism. The best thing about Machop is he wants to be coached and compete. I am excited to watch him grow both on and off the field."
Omir Fernandez | 5-9, 155 | Midfielder | Bronx, N.Y. | Columbia Secondary School | NY Red Bulls
Background:
Rated as the No. 26 recruit in the nation by TopDrawerSoccer, as well as the No. 2 prospect from New Jersey ... Attended U.S. U-14, U-15 and U-18 National Team Camps ... Played club soccer for the New York Red Bulls Academy under Jeff Zaun, scoring 20 goals in 24 games in 2016-17 ... Chose Wake Forest over North Carolina, Virginia, Loyola and Columbia.
Personal:
Full name is Omir Guadalupe Fernandez ... Born on Feb. 8, 1999 ... Son of Omir and Maria Fernandez.
Muuss' Take:
"Omir's ability to run in behind and find ways to score goals is something I have not seen in a youth player in a very long time. He's a selfless player who plays his role on the field, but more importantly, he finds ways to positively impact the game. He brings tons of experience from playing with Red Bulls and the National Team, and we expect him to have the same impact in the ACC."
Landen Haig | 6-1, 165 | Forward | Melbourne Beach, Fla. | Melbourne HS | Orlando City SC
Background:
Rated as the No. 126 recruit in the nation by TopDrawerSoccer, as well as the No. 14 prospect from Florida ... Invited to the 2016 U.S. U-18 National Team camp ... His late father, Fidgi Haig, played for Haitian National Team, Orlando Lions and for the Cocoa Expos professionally before accumulating a 231-18-8 record as a high school coach ... Landen chose Wake Forest over South Florida, Central Florida, North Florida and Coastal Carolina.
Personal:
Full name is Landen Joseph Haig ... Born on Sept. 9, 1999 ... Son of Rebecca Coates ... Graduated high school as a member of the honor roll.
Muuss' Take:
"Each time I see Landen he gets better and better. He is a strong forward who can hold the ball up but also knows how to stretch teams. Landen does a good job of getting around goal and scores goals in a handful of ways. He and his team play an attractive style which I feel will certainly help Landen with his transition to playing here at Wake Forest."
Kyle McCurley | 5-10, 145 | Midfielder/Defender | Lake Zurich, Ill. | Lake Zurich HS | Chicago Magic PSG
Background:
Rated as the No. 10 recruit in the Midwest Region by TopDrawerSoccer ... Played club soccer with Chicago Magic PSG and FC United ... Sister, Katie, plays soccer at Ohio, while brother, Brad, is a professional paintballer with AC Dallas ... Mother, Sue, swam at Bowling Green ... Competed in the 2016 USSDA Academy playoffs ... Reached the NPL finals in 2014 and 2015, and was named to the NPL Finals TopDrawer Starting XI in 2015 ... Chose Wake Forest over Notre Dame, Saint Louis, Yale, Penn State, Dayton and SIUE ... Also played lacrosse and wrestled in high school.
Personal:
Full name is Kyle Joseph McCurley ... Born on March 26, 1999 ... Son of Sue and Dan McCurley ... Member of the honor roll eight times in high school.
Muuss' Take:
"Kyle is everything you want as a college coach. He is one of the hardest workers on the field and brings a competitiveness that we need in the center of the park. Kyle will cover ground, connect the game and offers a ton of versatility. His work ethic and selflessness are contagious."
Mark McKenzie | 5-11, 185 | Defender | Bronx, N.Y. | YSC Academy | Philadelphia Union
Background:
Rated as the No. 29 recruit in the country, including the No. 8 defender nationally ... Member of the U.S. U-18 Men's National Team, also attending camps for the U-18, U-16 and U-15 National Teams ... Played club soccer for the Delaware Rush and with the Philadelphia Union Acadmey, where he started 26 of the 27 games he played in the last two years ... Went to high school with current Wake Forest teammates Joey DeZart and Justin McMaster ... Chose Wake Forest over North Carolina, Virginia, Michigan State, Villanova and Delaware.
Personal:
Full name is Mark Alexander McKenzie ... Born on Feb. 25, 1999 ... Son of Mark and Lynette McKenzie ... Considering studying Medicine ... Member of the National Honor Society and National Society of High School Scholars.
Muuss' Take:
"Mark is one of the most humble players I have recruited. He will be coming to Wake with a wealth of experience from playing full time in the USL and with the U18 National Team. Mark is a great 1v1 defender, has ability to hit the switch and is a natural born leader in the back of the team."
Justin McMaster | 5-9, 165 | Midfielder/Forward | Kingston, Jamaica | YSC Academy (Pa.) | Philadelphia Union
Background:
Represented Jamaica in the 2013 CONCACAF U-15 Championship and the 2015 U-17 CONCACAF Championship ... Joined the 2016 U.S. U-18 National Team Camp ... Played as an amateur for USL Club Bethlehem Steel and as a member of the Philadelphia Union Academy ... Club teammate of fellow Deacon Mark McKenzie ... Picked Wake Forest over Clemson, Virginia and Villanova.
Personal:
Full name is Justin Cameron McMaster ... Born on June 30, 1999.
Muuss' Take:
"Justin is an explosive attacking player that we are extremely excited about getting into our system. Like some of the other members of this class, Justin brings in great national team and USL experience. He has great ability to beat players one-on-one and stretch teams, which is something we were looking to bring in with this recruiting class."
Andrew Pannenberg | 6-3, 195 | Goalkeeper | Charlotte, N.C. | Ardrey Kell HS | Charlotte Soccer Academy
Background:
Enrolled at Wake Forest for the 2017 spring semester ... Rated as the No. 103 recruit in the country, including the No. 5 goalkeeper, by TopDrawerSoccer ... Spent time with the U-17/18 Development Academy Team and was twice called up to the U.S. U-17 National Team ... Played as an amateur for the Charlotte Independence for two seasons ... Started in the 2014 Academy Select game and was named Academy Player of the Week in 2015 after beating Orlando City ... Voted the 2015 Charlotte Goalkeeper of the Year ... Picked Wake Forest over Duke, Notre Dame and Charlotte.
Personal:
Full name is Andrew Josef Pannenberg ... Born on Sept. 21, 1998 ... Son of Mark and Beth Pannenberg.
Muuss' Take:
"Andrew comes to Wake Forest as one of the best young goalkeepers in the country. He got valuable experience while being here this spring. He's a competitive, hard-working goalkeeper who wants and is committed to developing and winning. Andrew is a very good shot stopper with great size to compete at the college level."
Dominic Peters | 6-3, 170 | Goalkeeper | Santa Clara, Calif. | Bellarmine College Prep | San Jose Earthquakes
Background:
Played under Conor Salcido and Brandi Chastain in high school, winning a conference and sectional title ... Has trained with the Argentenian National Team and the San Jose Earthquakes first team ... Earthquakes U16 team gave up the fourth-fewest goals in the conference in 2015-16 ... Brother, Cameron, competes in track and field at Seattle ... Chose Wake Forest over New Mexico, San Jose State, Santa Clara and Georgetown.
Personal:
Full name is Dominic Ryan Peters ... Born on Sept. 10, 1999 ... Son of Jared and Susan Peters ... Served as a Presidential/Arrupe Ambassador for two years in high school.
Muuss' Take:
"Dominic is one of the most consistent goalkeepers in the country. He is a great young man who is eager to learn and compete to be on the field. Not only is he a very good shot stopper, but he also does a great job with shot prevention. Each time we have seen Dom play, we've witnessed steady improvement and a player we believe will be a very good college soccer goalkeeper."
Brandon Servania | 5-10, 160 | Midfielder | Birmingham, Ala. | Lone Star HS (Texas) | FC Dallas
Background:
Rated as the No. 13 recruit in the nation, as well as the No. 2 prospect from Texas and the No. 7 midfielder nationally ... Member of the U.S. U-18 National Team ... Named an NSCAA All-American ... Was a USSDA U-15/16 National Champion and named to the Best XI ... Played under coach Francisco Molina with the FC Dallas Academy.
Personal:
Full name is Brandon Iván Servania ... Born on March 12, 1999 ... son of Ken and Grisel Servania ... Member of the National Spanish Honor Society.
Muuss' Take:
"Brandon is a winner both on and off the field. We believe he is one of the very best central midfielders in the country and will continue to improve and develop because of his honesty and humility. He has performed and won at every level he has been exposed to. Brandon can connect the game, as well as add points and goals higher up the field."
