Luna was a dynamic offensive force up top for the , as he finished with team highs of five goals, five assists and 15 points.Ā  He finished fourth in the Old Dominion Athletic Conference in assists and seventh in total points.Ā  Luna also notched three game-winning goals in ODAC play, which led the league.Ā  In EMU’s big road upset of preseason favorite Roanoke on Oct. 2, Luna scored the game’s only goal late in the first half.

This is the fifth straight year that the Royals have placed at least one men’s soccer player on an All-State team.Ā  They have had 15 All-State honorees since 2008.

With a young team, Eastern Mennonite won three of their final four games in the regular season.Ā  They lost to eventual ODAC Champion Washington and Lee in the conference tournament, giving the Generals their closest contest in the tourney.

The Royals finished 4-5-2 in the ODAC and 6-12-2 overall.

names 27 All-State teams in 15 sports each year, as well as an Academic All-State squad and an all-sports champion in both the University and College Divisions. Membership in VaSID is open to all media relations professionals working at a university, college or conference in the state of Virginia.

2015 VaSID Men’s Soccer All-State Teams
Player of the Year: Ben Bayles, Washington and Lee University
Coach of the Year: Mike Singleton, Washington and Lee University
Rookie of the Year: Rick Perrault, Virginia Wesleyan College

All-State First Team
Forwards
Patrick Burns, Christopher Newport University
Troy Jurney, Randolph College
Freddy Flores, Lynchburg College

Midfielders
Ben Bayles, Washington and Lee University
BlakeHeatherly, Randolph College
Harry Nodwell, Christopher Newport University

Defenders
Sean Christein, Christopher Newport University
Patrick Barry, Washington and Lee University
Cristian Irigoyen, Randolph College
Dio Beck, Roanoke College
Nate Berning, Lynchburg College
Rodney Ngoh, Marymount University

Goalie
Nolan Mann, Christopher Newport University

All-State SecondĀ Team
Forwards
Rob Lentine, Roanoke College
Juan Luna, ²ŻŻ®ÉēĒų
Ricky Perrault, Virginia Wesleyan College
Jordan Couch, Emory & Henry College

Midfielders
Mike Bennett, University of Mary Washington
Tyler Carbaugh, Roanoke College
Logan McHugh, Randolph-Macon College

Defenders
Kevin Gidari, Bridgewater College
Jack Maxey, Randolph-Macon College
Bobby Seifert, Christopher Newport University

Goalie
Matt Spencer, University of Mary Washington

(Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson) is a junior transfer who has proven to be a great asset to the menā€™s soccer team. Dependable, dedicated and hardworking, Luna consistently shows passion for the game. His performance last week in games against Wesley and in a win over ODAC preseason favorite, Roanoke, earns him recognition as this weekā€™s Royals Athlete of the Week.

ā€œWe hadnā€™t scored since Ferrum I believe, our last win. Ā I was in a scoring slump as well,ā€ he recalled. ā€œIt puts a lot of pressure on me because every game my team is like, ā€˜Okay Juan, you have to cash some checks tonight.ā€™ Ā But I feel like that first goal against Wesley really opened the gates, and weā€™re just flowing with it now.ā€

Against Wesley College on Sept. 29, Luna scored EMU’s first goal in four games. Ā Although the match resulted in a 4-1 loss, they would achieve a great win to make up for it. Three days later the men played Roanoke, last yearā€™s conference regular season champions. Luna scored in the 40th minute against the Maroons, putting them up 1-0 and sealing the win for the team.

He noted that Roanoke hadnā€™t had an ODAC loss since 2013, which made the win even sweeter.

ā€œIt felt really nice (beating Roanoke) although the weather was horrible,ā€ Luna said. ā€œWe have a really young team, about half of them are freshmen. Thereā€™s no substitute for experience, so every game we get a little bit better, and thatā€™s the only thing we ask. Everyone is clicking, and during the Roanoke game we all put the pieces together and finally got a good result.ā€

Luna lived in the city of MorolƩon in Guanajuato, Mexico, until he was seven years old. With a father who was a former professional soccer player, Juan learned his skills at a young age.

ā€œHe filled my brain with soccer since I was little,ā€ Juan said. ā€œWhen I was a baby, the first thing my dad gave me was a soccer ball. He was definitely a big influence. When I was in Mexico, my dad put me in soccer academies, so Iā€™ve grown up with it. It has always been around me.ā€

Luna played for an academy called Morelia, a common experience for Mexican youth.

ā€œHere in the States soccer is nothing compared to what it is in Mexico,ā€ he pointed out. ā€œIn Mexico, all they do is eat, breath, and sleep soccer. Here, soccer is a big part of the culture, but itā€™s nothing compared to Mexico. Regular kids, well, pretty much every kid thatā€™s there goes to school, and as soon as they get out, they go to the soccer academy. Ā They go home, do homework, sleep, and start the cycle again.ā€

His commitment has paid off.Ā  Utilizing a high IQ of the game, he’s developed strong skills as a playmaker.

ā€œWhat I like about my play is I can find the gaps between people, which people normally wouldnā€™t see,ā€ Luna said. ā€œI can foresee a play thatā€™s going to build up without the play even being there. Ā I can visualize it and thatā€™s what really helps me to spread the ball and find other teammates.ā€

Despite his love of soccer, it was not always his only sport. Luna started playing football his freshman year of high school. He eventually attended D-I James Madison University and was a kicker for the JMU football team.

Luna describes transferring to Eastern Mennonite as being one of the best decisions he has made. ā€œI like the community here more than at JMU,ā€ Luna explained. Ā ā€œEveryone here knows you and youā€™re not just another number.”

Luna, a Spanish major who is contemplating a career in law enforcement, also says he appreciates the availability of professors, especially coming from a larger school where he experienced bigger classes and less interaction with professors.

Academics are just as important to Luna as soccer is: his three goals for this academic year are raising his GPA, scoring 10 goals before the end of the season, and continuing to work hard in practice and games.

As of Monday, Sept. 22Ā the team is 2-4-2, with several double overtime games under their belt.Ā MastĀ hopes that competitive edge puts his team back into the postseason tourney for the 22nd time in his 24 years at the helm.

Lessons learned from 2013 season

“The 2013 season was one that I would capture as being one of near misses: one game out of making the ODAC Tournament and numerous one goal losses,” Mast explained. “That plays into our team this fall in that we will train to compete. Much of our training will be geared towards competition. We want to instill in our 2014 team a competitive will and work ethic that will turn those close matches into victories.”

The Royals had five one-goal losses last year, including four in conference play. Two of those were in overtime. A win in any of those games would have given EMU the three points they needed to make a jump in the ODAC standings to make the tourney.

In Mast’s mind, his team needs to play their “A” game for every conference outing.

“The competitive balance in the ODAC is hardly fair,” he said. “We must come to play our best each time we have an ODAC opponent on our slate. There is not a team that we can take lightly. The preparation that it takes for each conference team is critical, but even more crucial is having the team intensity and work ethic at a high level for each of these matches.”

All-ODAC players return for new season

Headlining the returners is a pair of former All-ODAC honorees, although one was a pleasant surprise return.

²Ń¾±»å“Ś¾±±š±ō»å±š°łĢżĀ (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) is back for his senior season playing for his father. He had three goals and four assists last year, tying for the team lead with 10 points. Mast was an All-ODAC Third Team honoree as a sophomore.

¶Ł±š“Ś±š²Ō»å±š°łĢżĀ (Limon, Costa Rica/Colegio de Limon Diurno) is back to finish up his classwork under a fifth season. He scored three goals last year, but his suffocating presence in the middle of the backline earned him All-ODAC First Team and VaSID All-State First Team awards.

“Chris returns this season as a fifth year senior,” explained Coach Mast, “as he was a medical redshirt his freshman season at Old Dominion before transferring to EMU. Chris is a very good organizer of our back four defenders. He also brings good leadership to the team.”

The team also returns super-subĀ Ā (Bluffton, Oh./Bluffton), with his three goals and one assist as a junior, as well as senior midfielderĀ Ā (Harleysville, Pa./Christopher Dock), who had two goals and an assist, and junior defenderĀ Ā (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts), who had a goal and an assist.

Mast says his returning core will give this year’s team strength.

“We have good leadership in our upperclassmen,” he explained. “The work ethic of our upperclassmen is high. We also have depth in the goalkeeper position and we have strong enough numbers on our roster to create a competitive atmosphere for training and earning playing time.”

Senior keeperĀ Ā (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite) is a two-year starter with 188 career saves. He will give leadership to, but also be pushed by, some talented newcomers.

Freshman and transfer student add depth to team

“Matt OverackerĀ (Mount Crawford, Va./Turner Ashby) andĀ Ryan ZerkelĀ (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson) are incoming freshmen who will add depth and compete for playing time in the goalkeeper position,” said Mast. “Andrew brings in some quality experience and our young keepers bring some athleticism and competitive desire.”

While the team must replace All-ODAC forward Christian Rhine (13 goals in two season before transferring to Penn State), along with seven graduated seniors and a handful of other role players, the Royals got a boost from the local schools.

“Juan LunaĀ (Mount Jackson, Va./Stonewall Jackson) is returning to the soccer field after a stint as a place kicker at James Madison University,” Mast said, “and he has decided to transfer to EMU. Juan is a dynamic attacking player. Local freshmen players areĀ Zach SauderĀ (Lyndhurst, Va./Stuarts Draft),Ā Grayson MastĀ (Harrisonburg, Va./Eastern Mennonite),Ā Brandon FernĀ (Fishersville, Va./Wilson Memorial) andĀ Braden HermanĀ (Waynesboro, Va./Fort Defiance). In all, we have 37 players reporting for preseason and competing for 28-32 roster spots.”

Difficult non-conference schedule sets the stage for ODAC wins

Once again, Mast scheduled a number of quality non-conference sides to get his men ready for the rigors of the Old Dominion Athletic Conference.

“We have added Johns Hopkins, Gettysburg, Frostburg State, Southern Virginia and Ferrum to our non-conference venue,” said EMU’s coach. “We also have teams that we played in 2013 such as Lebanon Valley, Mary Washington and Marymount. We have chosen to play a difficult non-conference schedule to help to prepare our team for our ODAC opponents.”

Coaching changes at assistant level

There are also some changes on the sidelines, as assistant coach Ted Erickson was hired as EMU’s head women’s soccer coach. Juan Flores, who played in 17 games in his final season of eligibility last fall, and Patrick Bain, an All-ODAC and All-Region player at Roanoke, join the staff this year.

“I look forward to working with Patrick and Juan,” said Mast in late August.Ā “Our goal is to have the players working very hard on both sides of the ball and to be professional in all aspects of our soccer program.”

Learn more about EMU , , and the on the .

And to competitors around the Old Dominion Athletic Conference, JoĆ£o ā€œChrisā€ Downs is regarded as one of the top defenders in the league.

The Costa Rican-born Old Dominion University transfer, who joined EMU following a freshman campaign with the Monarchs that was completely wiped out when he tore the ACL in his right knee, earned first-team all-league honors last year and will begin his senior season when the Royals visit Mary Washington in Fredericksburg on Friday.

ā€œThere are a couple things that Chris does really, really well: Heā€™s very athletic ā€“ heā€™s a Division I athlete. Heā€™s strong,ā€ longtime Royals coach Roger Mast said. ā€œI think his speed may have been affected a little bit from his ACL injury, but physically, heā€™s strong. ā€¦ Heā€™s very composed on the ball. Even under pressure, you never see him panic.ā€

Pronounced JAY-ow, JoĆ£o ā€” a Portuguese surname ā€“ is what the 6-foot-2, 190-pound Downs said he prefers to go by. But the difficult spelling and pronunciation of the name led him to adopt ā€œChrisā€ in Harrisonburg for the sake of simplicity.

Downs was born in rural LimĆ³n, Costa Rica, and his father, Cristobal, who now works as a port agent in the Central American country, has raised cattle for both dairy and meat products as a hobby since Chris was a boy.

In fact, Chris Downs said his father sold ā€œa coupleā€ of his livestock to pay for his sonā€™s plane ticket to the United States when he left for ODU prior to the 2011 season.

That background, Mast said, made Downsā€™ transition to the beach life in Norfolk ā€“ his first time being in the United States ā€“ immensely more challenging.

ā€œI wouldnā€™t say growing up in Costa Rica was as hard for me as other kids because I had both parents that worked and provided for me all the time,ā€ Downs said. ā€œI can guarantee you that I was one of the kids playing in the streets that had shoes because my dad used to be like, ā€˜I donā€™t want you messing up your feet. Youā€™re going to wear shoes, no matter if they cheap shoes or whatever. Whenever you need shoes, we have to buy you shoes.ā€™ā€

Downs said he ended up with the Royals after his one-year scholarship at ODU was not renewed following his ACL injury. EMU turned out to be the one and only program Downs visited after leaving ODU, too, and Mast credited that to the down-to-earth atmosphere in Harrisonburg and its surrounding rural areas.

Now at age 24, Downs ā€“ who admits his knee still gives him problems from time to time ā€“ is ready to play his final competitive season of soccer before hoping to parlay his eventual liberal arts degree into a sports management career.

ā€œSince I was like a 1-year-old, I can remember being obsessed with the game,ā€ Downs said. ā€œAnd for me, to keep playing, itā€™s just the passion. No matter how hurt I am, Iā€™ll just try to recover and keep playing.ā€

Eastern Mennonite, picked to finish ninth this fall in the 12-team ODAC, was 5-13 a year ago and is entering its 24th season under Mast. During that time, Mast said heā€™s had ā€œat leastā€ 20 foreign-born players compete at his program.

Mast added another international athlete prior to this season in sophomore attacker Juan Luna, a Mexican-born former kicker on the Stonewall Jackson High School and James Madison football teams.

Luna and Downs, who along with student assistant Juan Flores are the only Spanish-first speakers in EMUā€™s program, often find themselves battling head-to-head in practice.

ā€œHeā€™s very physical, very vocal,ā€ Luna said of Downs. ā€œIā€™d say heā€™s the general of his troops ā€“ he definitely knows how to rally everybody up. ā€¦ His timing is just so precise, and thatā€™s something that really, really helps him.ā€

Courtesy of the Daily News Record, Aug. 28, 2014