cover photo from the University of Pittsburgh
Seniors
1. Andreu Cases Mundet (Santa Clara, Spain)
2. Nico Campuzano (Pittsburgh)
3. Ruben Stuiver (San Francisco, Netherlands)
4. Andrew Pannenberg (Wake Forest) #
5. Colin Shutler (Virginia) #
6. Will Palmquist (Denver)
7. Tor Saunders (Coastal Carolina) #
8. Will Pulisic (Duke) #
9. Noah Lawrence (Ohio State) #
10. Ben Hale (Furman)
11. TJ Bush (James Madison)
12. Paul Tyson (Georgia State, England)
13. Chase Vosvick (Loyola Maryland)
14. Drew Romig (Belmont)
15. Keagan McLaughlin (Notre Dame)
# - Pulisic signed with Austin FC, Pannenberg with Colorado Springs, and Shutler with North Texas SC. Saunders and Lawrence were drafted by Nashville and Austin, respectively.
One to Watch: Noah Lawrence. Describing Lawrence’s last 18 months as “tumultuous” would be underselling it. After the former Bearcat saw the University of Cincinnati terminate their men’s soccer program, Lawrence joined Ohio State for his last year of eligibility before COVID upended his senior season. In January, Lawrence heard his name called in the third round of the 2021 MLS Superdraft, showing his hard work had not gone unnoticed. However, Austin has since stocked up on young goalkeeping talent (Brady Scott, Will Pulisic), leaving Lawrence with yet another challenge to clear.
Lawrence’s game is built off of covering ground quickly and easily, although he has struggled to solve tight situations consistently. If the Bearcat-turned-Buckeye goalkeeper can add more tools to his toolbox to effectively take vertical space and solve awkward close-range shooting situations, look for Lawrence to work his way up Austin’s goalkeeping depth chart.
Juniors
1. Giannis Nikopolidis (Georgetown, Greece)
2. Neil Strauber (Florida Atlantic, Israel)
3. Carson Williams (Villanova)
4. Eliot Hamill (Duke)
5. Andrew Thomas (Stanford)
6. Daniel Husa (Gardner-Webb, Norway)
7. Quantrell Jones (UMBC)
8. Trevor Schneider (UTRGV, Canada)
9. Rimi Olatunji (Providence, Canada)
10. George Marks (Clemson)
One to Watch: Eliot Hamill. It’s not common for a goalkeeper with no USYNT experience to sit for three falls then take over the starting position for an ACC. However, after the exit of senior goalkeeper Will Pulisic, Duke turned to Hamill for the bulk of their minutes. Although USYNT alum and freshman goalkeeper JT Harms received some playing time, Hamil’s experience to handle pressure was something that impressed head coach John Kerr, which says a lot about Hamill’s determination to continue to develop despite the lack of minutes.
Similar to Lawrence, Hamill possesses impressive speed and reflexes but can resort to “shooting from the hip” when plays break down, which happened a fair bit during Duke’s 4-3-10 (W-T-L) season. Starting for Duke in itself is no easy feat - and keeping Harms on the bench only adds to the pressure - but Hamill could quickly find himself going from an unknown backup goalkeeper to a top prospect for the 2022 MLS SuperDraft, if he’s able to find a healthy blend of methodical and improvisational.
Sophomores
1. Lluis Martorell (SIUE, Spain)
2. Roman Celentano (Indiana)
3. Kris Shakes (Penn State)
4. Ryan Troutman (Kentucky)
5. Matt Zambetti (Virginia Tech)
6. Michael Collodi (Columbia)
7. Giacomo Piccardo (Davidson, Italy)
8. Seanan Main (Western Illinois, Canada)
9. Holden Trent (High Point)
10. Sam Fowler (Washington)
One to Watch: Roman Celentano. Celentano fits the bill for a typical Hoosier goalkeeper: big, strong hands, and confident cross management skills. The Illinois native plays in a way that is eerily reminiscent of goalkeeping from the early-00s, almost as if he missed the memo that goalkeepers don’t collect crosses outside of their six-yard box anymore.
Typically Indiana’s defense does well to protect their goalkeepers (notice the yearly high save percentage for their goalkeepers) and this year is no different. However, the modern game asks for goalkeepers to make quick, nuanced decisions in tenths of a second. Celentano reads attacking balls well but isn’t extremely quick-footed and can make playing out of the back look cumbersome at times. For goalkeepers with Celentano’s size, it’s not uncommon to perform well at the amateur level but plateau moving forward. Look to see if Celentano can answer nuanced questions within the position and be more than just a big goalkeeper moving forward.
Freshmen
1. Luis Ludosan (St. Joseph's, Romania)
2. Lorenzo Gordon (American)
3. Cyrus Margono (Kentucky)
4. Leon Musial (UNC Asheville, Germany)
5. Emil Larsen (Wofford, Denmark)
6. Josue Hangi (Akron)
7. Alex Bobocea (Loyola, MD)
8. Owen Elliott (Penn State)
9. Ryan Schewe (Georgetown)
10. Brandon Keniston (San Francisco)
One to Watch: Cyrus Margono. What’s in store for the future of Kentucky’s goalkeeping core is anybody’s guess. The Wildcats rotated three goalkeepers this season, including redshirt freshman Cyrus Margono, who transferred out of the University of Denver to join Kentucky. Although Margono only picked up one win in his three appearances, he played about as good as one could hope a 19-year-old stepping in for a top 25 school would. Margono possesses the athleticism and poise to take over the starting position but Kentucky saw success with sophomore goalkeeper Ryan Troutman in net, going 7-2-1 (W-T-L) over the ten games. Margono didn’t transfer to sit on the bench but Kentucky is well prepared to move forward in the post-Enrique Facusse era with two talented goalkeepers. Keep an eye out for who emerges as the top goalkeeper in Lexington.
Past Collegiate Goalkeeper Rankings
2020: Preseason
2019: Preseason and Final
2018: Preseason and Final
2017: Preseason and Final
2016: Preseason and Final
2015: Preseason and Final
2014: Final