Preseason Photo Galleries
ART U vs. City College of San Francisco (8-23-13) - Images by Ian Sutherland & Rob Garcia
ART U vs. Sonoma State (8-31-13) - Images by Ian Sutherland

Experience playing the game of soccer runs in veins of the 2013 Academy of Art University Urban Knights. Led by new head coach Mike Keller, who enjoyed tremendous success in three years at Menlo after assisting ART U in 2009, the men's soccer team finds its roster loaded with upperclassmen and a variety of skilled young artist-athletes who embark upon an 18-match campaign this week.



"I think the experience I gained from Menlo as well as my familiarity with this conference, the players and, most importantly, the school and its mission will help us along our way as fast as we can," Coach Keller said.

After wrapping up their third and final scrimmage this past weekend, the Urban Knights kickoff their sixth year in program history on Thursday, Sept. 5 when they host Humboldt State (Live Stats, Twitter updates) at 11:00 AM at Crocker Amazon Field. The Lumberjacks return after a year hiatus and will be under the direction of new head coach Fred Jungemann. Then, on Saturday, Sept. 7, ART U heads to Seaside, CA for a pairing with Cal State Monterey Bay at 12:30 PM (Live Stats). The Otters were 3-12 overall last year with two of their three victories taking place in overtime.

A San Francisco-heavy early portion of the 2013 schedule will see Academy of Art play nine of its 10 home matches in the first six weeks. In addition to Humboldt and CSUMB, the Knights see Saint Martin's and Simpson during non-conference play, then a trip to face all four Hawaii schools comes in late October followed by the season finale on Nov. 9 back at home versus Fresno Pacific. For a more detailed look at this year's schedule, click here.

With over half the team represented by upperclassmen, ART U will have numerous years of experience on its side this season. Making up the senior group are Sylvester Gyan, Leonardo Bartelle, Andrew Durano, Patrick Heinemann, Aron Ekberg, Carlos Hernandez, and Luis Barrera. It is an unselfish bunch as Ekberg led the team with five assists last season and the tandem of Heinemann (11) and Durano (9) go one and two in the program's all-time assists list.

"Andrew Durano is a great leader by example," Coach Keller said. "He's the first one at training and works hard everyday. He's been here the longest and wants to go with a great season."

The ART U junior class has been expanded by a host of newcomers from a variety of locations. Joshua Leader (Tennessee Wesleyan) and Manuel Garcia-Resendez (Fresno City College) mix with redshirts Mike Anderson (Orange Coast College) and Jon "Jay" Eldon (Reykjavik, Iceland) to complement returners Thorvaldur "Thobbi" Sveinsson, Jonmundur Gretarsson, Runar Gudbjartsson, Brady Fiero, and Frederik Nagel. Fans will get to see Sveinsson, brother to former assistant coach and four-year Urban Knight Vilmundur Sveinsson, after an ART U debut in which he scored three goals and provided one assist.

"Thobbi has a great voice on the field," Coach Keller said. "The guys respect him and he does a lot of the grind work a team needs.  Carlos and Kristof also have a lot of respect from the guys are important voices within the team."

Returning for their second year of collegiate action are Lennart Fleschhut, Jesus "Chava" Sanchez, and Kristof Urbanyi. The sophomores are joined by Malcolm McLellan (Temple University) and Jacob Baumann (Urban Knight in 2011). Fleschhut and Urbanyi provided a strong back line for ART U in 2012 while Sanchez scored three goals as a dynamic striker.

"We have a great core of guys coming back from last season," Coach Keller said. "They're really hard-working guys and they really enjoy playing as well as each other. They have a lot of passion for the game and they're always great to work with."

A primarily local freshmen class is made up of William "Willy" Velasco Villa (Sacred Heart HS), Ricardo "Ricky" Mendoza (Gateway HS), and Luca Theis (goalkeeper from Luxembourg who redshirted in 2012). For more on the freshmen and newcomers, click here.

A new chapter in ART U Men's Soccer begins this Thursday. Competitive as ever and eager to see this squad realize their true potential, the Urban Knights will rely on a vast reservoir of experience and  look to make another crucial step in the program's second year with postseason aspirations.

"We have a lot of returners and would like to make a big splash this year," Coach Keller said. "We're just looking to play the best soccer we can, win as many games as we can, put out the best effort every day on the field, and continue to do well in the classroom. We really want to put a new stamp on the program and play the best we can everyday."