Men's Soccer Adds Four Heralded Players to 2012 Signing Class
Feb. 2, 2012
Note: Scroll to bottom for press conference video discussing incoming class CORVALLIS, Ore. - Continuing a run of attracting homegrown talent from the Pacific Northwest, the Oregon State men's soccer team has added four prep standouts, including three from the state of Oregon, to an already strong recruiting class, head coach Steve Simmons announced Thursday. Keenan dePinna (Portland, Ore./Jesuit HS), Jackson Groves (Adelaide, Australia/University of Adelaide), Tyler Patterson (Pleasant Hill, Ore./Marist HS) and Zachary Striar (Portland, Ore./Cleveland HS) will join the Beavers on campus for the 2012 season. "I am extremely excited to welcome four young student-athletes of this caliber to our program," Simmons said of the group. "With an already exceptionally strong core of returning players, this additional infusion of talent will continue to aid in our development and help us achieve success at both the Pac-12 and national levels." dePinna played 10 years for FC Portland as a center midfielder and forward, captaining his side to the 2011 state finals. A strong bloodline also helped the Portland native excel at Jesuit High School, where in his senior season he served as team captain, was named most valuable player and earned selections to the All-Metro First Team and All-State Honorable Mention squad. As the team's most improved player in 2010, the Crusaders claimed the 6A State Championship. dePinna's father, Mike, played soccer for the Portland Timbers, while his brother Lucas is a forward at Whittier College in Southern California. Groves, a midfielder, will add yet more international flavor to the Beavers' roster, which last year featured five footballers from outside the United States, more than any other Pac-12 team. The Australian, who will have three years of eligibility remaining after transferring from the University of Adelaide, has played the last six seasons with the Metro Stars organization of the South Australian Super League, finishing in the top 10 of league MVP voting the last two years while a member of the first team. In 2009 he was the captain of the U-19 side and was the U-19 Super League MVP. Patterson earned four letters and started for three years in goal at Marist High School in Eugene, serving his last two as team captain. He was a First Team All-Midwestern selection three times (2009-11) and the league's Player of the Year in 2011. His senior season he was also the team's Most Valuable Player and earned a spot on the All-State squad. The Pleasant Hill native played his club soccer for EMFC '93 Fusion from 2006-12 and also suited up for the Oregon ODP `94s. Striar was also a member of the Oregon ODP `94s for four years and has played with a number of current Beavers, including Alex Eckerson and Mikhail Doholis. Adding to the growing list of Oregon State student-athletes from the Portland area, Striar played his club soccer for Westside Metro Premier and also earned four letters as a midfielder and forward at Cleveland High School. He was First Team All-Portland Interscholastic League (PIL) in 2010 and 2011 and was the PIL Player of the Year after his senior season. He was also an All-State Honorable Mention his junior year and won a spot on the First Team in 2011 when he also served as team captain. In its prep soccer rankings, ESPN selected Striar as one of the top 20 players from the state of Oregon. The four will join early enrollee and national top-100 player Mikhail Doholis on the Oregon State men's soccer roster this coming season. The Beavers finished the 2011 season fourth in the conference, placing four student-athletes on All-Pac-12 squads (Emery Welshman, Roberto Farfan, Chris Harms, Colin Mitchell). Oregon State is one of only two Pac-12 schools to return all of its All-Conference honorees for the 2012 season.
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