Feb. 17, 2008
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – Notre Dame men’s soccer head coach Bobby Clark has announced the signing of seven student-athletes to national letters of intent. The versatile class boasts three prep All-Americans and three players that have played on national teams. All seven student-athletes hail from different states.
Comprising the Notre Dame men’s soccer class of 2012 is: M/F Brendan King (Naperville, Ill.), M/D Aaron Maund (Dorchester, Mass.), D Sean McGrath (Indianapolis, Ind.), M Adam Mena (Holland, Mich.), M/F Michael Rose (Severna Park, Md.), M/D Chris Sutton (Apple Valley, Minn.) and GK Will Walsh (Chester Twp., N.J.).
“I think this is another terrific class,” says Clark. “We are very excited with this group. It’s a very athletic group with some talented players. It’s just a very exciting group of players. I think it adds to last year’s class and then the year before. That’s the nice thing, we are now seeing a succession of very good recruiting classes coming to Notre Dame.”
Brendan King, M/F, 6-0, 160 (Naperville, Ill./Edison Academic Center-Bradenton, Fla.)
Enrolled at Notre Dame in January of 2008 after graduating from high school early … member of the 2007 U-17 U.S. World Cup team … also played on the U-17 qualifying team … member of the U.S. soccer residency program … two-time NSCAA All-American (2006 &2007) … Parade Magazine All-American … played for the Chicago Magic club … son of Donna and Tom King.
Clark on King: “Brendan has been in residency with the U.S. national program for the last year and a half. A great thing with Brendan is that he really has a head start on everyone else because having been at Bradenton (Florida) he was able to graduate a semester early and he became our first player to enroll at the University in January. He has a good engine, good feet and is good technically. He’s wirey strong. Again, he can play a number of roles. For the national team he either played underneath the main striker or he played on the flanks. I’ve also seen him play in an attacking midfield role for his club team, the Chicago Magic. He can help the team in a lot of areas.”
Aaron Maund, M/D, 6-1, 175 (Dorchester, Mass./The Roxbury Latin School)
A four-year varsity starter at The Roxbury Latin School in addition to being a two-time team captain … two-time all-state performer … two-time all-independent schools league first team member … all-New England selection as a senior … led Roxbury Latin to a New England class B semifinal during his senior season … member of the United States U-14, U-15 and U-17 national pools … member of the U-17 Trinidad & Tobago national team and started all three games in the 2007 U-17 World Cup in South Korea … won a national championship with the FC Greater Boston in 2005 (U-15) … Massachusetts ODP and Region I ODP member … earned a letter in lacrosse as a sophomore … two-time letterwinner in track & field during his final two scholastic campaigns … has two younger siblings … son of Karen and Scott Maund.
Clark on Maund: “We can see Aaron as central defender, but he can also play in the midfield. He played with Trinidad & Tobago at the under-17 World Cup last year. Aaron was born in Massachusetts but through his father he qualified to play for Trinidad & Tobago and made their team. He’s tremendously athletic. Until we get him we won’t know exactly where he’ll be best suited. I saw him play at the regional tournament for the Massachusetts state team and he played central defender and I was most impressed. He’s athletic, strong, fast and can play.”
Sean McGrath, D, 5-8, 145 (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike)
A four-year letterwinner at Pike High School … a member of four conference-title winning teams … totaled 134 points on 33 goals and 68 assists … his career assist total was a school-record mark … started 78 consecutive games, also a school record … two-time all-state, all-county and Indianapolis Super Team selection … garnered all-conference and all-district accolades three times … captained his team to a regional championship during his junior season and a sectional championship his senior year … two-time team captain … named a scholar-athlete … eight-year member of the Indy Burn Eagles … that team has won six consecutive Indiana State Cup titles … in 2006, he trained at Liverpool FC Academy in the United Kingdom … four-year member of the ’89 Indiana State ODP squad … was on the U.S. Junior National Racquetball team in 2002 … an All-American racquetball player in 2002 and 2003 … Junior All-American Sportsmanship Award recipient in racquetball in 2003 … son of Cathy and Patrick McGrath.
Clark on McGrath: “Sean’s not over big, but he’s very athletic and quick. He has a tremendous left foot and he crosses the ball very well. He’s an ideal person to understudy Jack Traynor at the left back position and get himself ready for next year. We’ve seen him now for a couple years at camp and we are most impressed. We are excited to have another Indiana guy join our squad.”
Adam Mena, M/F, 5-10, 145 (Holland, Mich./West Ottawa High School)
A three-year starter at West Ottawa High School … his 66 career goals is a school record … two-time area player of the year … two-time first-team all-state along with being an honorable mention choice once … three-time all-conference and all-district in addition to being an all-area selection on three occasions … 2007 Super Y League national select team member … also earned a letter in track … named a scholar-athlete and received academic all-state honors … son of Lisa and Bonifacio Mena.
Clark on Mena: “Adam is another guy that attended our elite camp the last two years. He comes from right up the road in Grand Rapids, Michigan. He’s been an all-state player the past two years. Adam is tremendously technical and he also has a tremendous engine, he can run all day. He also has good vision. He has all the tools you need to be a good midfield player.”
Michael Rose, M/F, 6-1, 165 (Severna Park, Md./Severna Park)
A four-year starter at Severna Park High School … played in every game during his four-year career … named a NSCAA high school All-American in 2007 … adidas Golden Boot winner at the 2006 USYSA national championship … member of the Baltimore Casa Mia Bays squad that won the 2006 U-16 national and Region 1 championship and the 2006 and 2007 Maryland state championship … member of the Maryland ’90 ODP team (2002-2007) that won the 2006 national co-championship in addition to the 2005 and 2006 Region 1 title … traveled to Italy and Brazil with Maryland ODP … two-time captain, two-time all-south and the first All-American in the history of Severna Park High School soccer program … career assist leader (37) and second-leading point total (99) during his high school career … as a senior, led Severna Park to the regional championship and its first county championship since 1998 … 2004 regional champion and state finalist … four-year starter and played every game at Severna Park … 2007 Annapolis Capital and Baltimore Sun Anne Arundel Player of the Year … Washington DC, Baltimore and Annapolis All-Met as a senior … a 2007 Notre Dame Elite Soccer Camp all-star selection … played for Maccabi Tel Aviv select team from 1998-2001 during a U.S. Embassy posting … member of the National Honor Society … top scholar-athlete as a senior … son of Joni and Roger Rose … sister Ashleigh attends Stanford.
Clark on Rose: “We see Michael mainly as a striker. He’s a very fast and athletic player. His club team won the under-16 national championship a couple of times and he won the Golden Boot for scoring the most goals in the tournament. I think he can score goals for us and he can also play the wide midfield area because he’s very athletic and he sometimes plays there for his club. He came to camp and we thought he’d be a good fit for Notre Dame in many, many ways. He’s obviously a good player and a good student and somebody we feel will fit in nicely to the program.”
Chris Sutton, M/D, 6-0, 175 (Apple Valley, Minn./Shattuck-St. Mary’s)
Member of the Minnesota state team and the regional team … member of the 2007 Region 2 regional team … 2007 adidas ESP participant … 2007 U.S. Club national finalist … helped his club team, Valley United Juventus, capture the Minnesota state title on three occasions and advance to the regional tournament … Shattuck Soccer team captain … 2004 rookie of the year for his Apple Valley High School soccer team … received the school’s Sportsmanship Award … has two siblings … son of MaryAnne and Marc Sutton.
Clark on Sutton: “Chris can play in the central defense or in the midfield. He plays at Shattuck-St. Mary’s and he’s been training every day under excellent coaching over the last couple of years. We watched him a few times last year and we were impressed with him composure on the ball. He has a tremendous range with his passing. What really impressed us wasn’t just his range in passing but his range of passing using either foot. He seems completely comfortable whether he’s using his left or right foot.”
Will Walsh, GK, 6-3, 180 (Chester Twp., N.J./Delbarton)
Starting goalkeeper as a sophomore at Delbarton … suffered an injury and missed his entire junior season … returned as a senior and his team was a state semifinalist and conference champion … as a freshman, he posted a 21-1-0 record, including 15 shutouts and the squad won the Morris County Cup … member of the United States soccer national team training camp in November of 2007 … U.S. national training select team at Nike friendlies in December of 2007 … four-year member of the Region I ODP … has traveled to Germany, Argentina, France and Italy among other places with his ODP squad … five-year member of the New Jersey ODP … in 2005-06 the team was a Region I finalist after being a semifinalist the previous year … member of the Parsippany Soccer Club of the Super Y League … invited to the Super Y national ODP camp in January of 2006 … selected to the all-league team from the 2007 Super Y finals … was the only goalkeeper selected to that squad … invited to the Super Y national ODP camp in January of 2008 … on the Parsippany U-17 Revolution team in 2007 that won the Jefferson Cup U-17 Premier White Division and the Potomac Cup U-17 Chesapeake Division … son of Mary Walsh.
Clark on Walsh: “We feel Will is a very talented goalkeeper. He’s big and strong and has a great physique. He was on one of the U.S. under-18 national select teams along with being a regional goalkeeper. His frame and physique makes him great for your last line of defense. An added thing is that he has great feet and he’s almost like a sweeper. He has as good of feet of any young goalkeeper that I’ve seen and he also has tremendous range in kicking the ball. He also makes good decisions.”
2008 University of Notre Dame Men's Soccer SigneesNAME POS. HT. WT. HOMETOWN/HIGH SCHOOLBrendan King M/F 6-0 160 Naperville, Ill./Edison Academic Center (Fla.)Aaron Maund M/D 6-1 175 Dorchester, Mass./The Roxbury Latin SchoolSean McGrath D 5-8 145 Indianapolis, Ind./PikeAdam Mena M 5-10 145 Holland, Mich./West Ottawa/West OttawaMichael Rose M/F 6-1 165 Severna Park, Md./Severna ParkChris Sutton M/D 6-0 175 Apple Valley, Minn./Shattuck-St. Mary's Shattuck, Minn./St. Mary'sWill Walsh GK 6-3 180 Chester Twp., N.J./Delbarton