#TOURdeFutSLC 2022: Salt Lake Community College men's soccer
#TOURdeFutSLC 2022: Salt Lake Community College men's soccer
A program whose age hasn't hit double digits yet, Salt Lake Community College men's soccer already has a national title. Is that the #NewStandard for the Bruins?
Good morning, and thank you for starting your day with Own Goals, the official newsletter of the Salt City FC podcast. In this space, we like to highlight soccer across the state of Utah — including, but not limited to, Real Salt Lake and Major League Soccer.
There are a lot of great soccer programs and traditions spread out across the state, and to limit our coverage to one level seems unfair. So over the next several weeks, we’re going to take a moment to spotlight the next big season of soccer on the Wasatch Front: college soccer.
If you want us to visit your college team’s practice, feel free to reach out to us on Twitter, Facebook or leave a comment on this Substack. But for now, we couldn’t think of a better place to start than the most recent national champions from the state: Salt Lake Community College.
The New Standard
Founded in 2016, it didn’t take long for the Bruins’ men’s soccer team to establish itself as a force on the national stage.
Playing during the COVID-19 shortened spring season of 2021, Salt Lake rolled to a 16-1-1 record and an NJCAA national title just five years after its founding. Since then, they’ve also continued to develop professional prospects, with players currently playing with Colorado Rapids 2, Sporting Kansas City II, Tulsa Athletic and Union Omaha, in addition to a handful of NCAA Division I programs.
So is that the new standard by which every SLCC team is measured? Fair or not, it might be, after spending last season ranked No. 1 in the NJCAA national poll before an upset in the national semifinals.
“That is our goal: our goal is to hold the trophy at the end of the season,” SLCC coach Mark Davis said. “That’s kind of been the goal since 2016. We were really bullish and bold on saying what we wanted to do right when we started the program. I think that’s just the way we’ve always been.
“Our ultimate goal is winning the national championship. So is moving kids on, so is getting good grades. Our goal is just to be the best versions of ourselves every day. And to say that we don’t hint at the idea of winning another national championship, it’s something we talk about. We mention the 2021 spring season all the time; it’s something we believe in.”
Key returners
Damian Arguello; MF; Caldwell, ID: The 2021 Gatorade Idaho Player of the Year at Caldwell High School, Arguello is a 5-foot-8, 135-pound attacking midfielder is the lead returning scorer to the team with six goals and two assists last year. After spending his freshman season in Salt Lake, he stayed in town over the summer to play in USL League Two and has been one of the top scorers through the first week of training camp for the Bruins.
Luis Toledo; MF; Denver, CO: The 5-foot-9 sophomore midfielder initially joined the team in the fall of 2020, but because of issues related to COVID-19 was unable to rejoin the team for the spring season — when the Bruins went on to win the national title. The Colorado Rapids Academy alum returned to guide the Bruins to the national semifinals last year, netting three goals with five assists. He has one season of eligibility remaining at the JUCO level.
Santiago Delfino; MF; Cordoba, Argentina: The 6-foot Argentine midfielder scored two goals in 15 games last year as a newly arrived midfielder from Gobernador Justo Paez Molina. Big in the air and with an aerial game expectant of the 6-foot attacker, Delfino scored two goals in 15 games a year ago, including 10 starts, and spent the summer with Park City Red Wolves.
Sergio Martinez; DF; Bogota, Colombia: The 6-foot-2 left back started 12 of the 18 games he played a year ago, scoring two goals with two assists on 15 shots for the Bruins. He’s already receiving scholarship interest from several Division I teams.
Key newcomers
Kevin Ventura; MF; Kensington, Md: Venture spent the past two seasons (including one non-counting COVID-19 season) at American University, where he appeared in 17 games as a sophomore with 15 starts, logging one assists as part of a defense that ranked third in Patriot League with a 1.17 goals-against average en route to a 9-5-4 campaign. A versatile defensive player standing 5-foot-9, Ventura has experience playing right back, left back and defensive midfielder.
Zion Wagner; F; Denver, CO: The 6-foot-2 forward was a two-sport star at Denver East High School, playing club soccer for Real Colorado, before enrolling at the University of Memphis last year. Wagoner played in just six games (176 minutes) as a true freshman for the Tigers, registering one assist on three shots before opting to transfer closer to home. Could he be the difference maker up top for the Bruins?
Ben Williams; GK; Lehi, Utah: The 6-foot-3, right-footed returned LDS missionary goalkeeper who prepped at Lehi High will look to fill the shoes of Christian Olivares, who started 15 of the 18 games he played for the Bruins last year and only allowed seven goals for a 0.39 goals-against average en route to a 9-1-1 record.
The Bruins will open the brand-new Bruin Soccer Field on the college’s Taylorsville campus (no, they won’t be playing at Zions Bank Stadium in Herriman anymore) with am intra-squad blue-vs-white scrimmage Saturday, Aug. 6 at 5 p.m. MT. SLCC’s first preseason scrimmage is Thursday, Aug. 11 against NCAA Division II Westminster in Taylorsville, followed by the home regular-season opener Aug. 27 against Central Wyoming College.
“Playing at Zions Bank Stadium was amazing, playing in a professional soccer stadium,” Davis said. “But that being said, having our own 120-by-75 field with the best artificial turf — the same turf in Providence Park in Portland — and having the college invest in us makes me feel proud of starting the program and seeing where it is today. It gets me really excited.”