Men's Soccer | 6/16/2022 12:49:00 PM

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. – Head coach Mark Bassett announced that 16 players will be joining the Bloomsburg University men's soccer team as part of its 2022 incoming class.
 
Of the 16 recruits, six are from Pennsylvania and the remaining 10 will be coming to Bloomsburg from five different states. The incoming class will be joining a Huskies squad that won nine games last year – the program's most since 2015 – and finished in fourth place of the PSAC East during Bassett's first year at the helm. 
 
Listed below is the full 2022 men's soccer recruiting class along with a short biography on each player:

Micah Diggs is from Groton, Connecticut by way of Pasadena, Maryland, and played high school soccer at both Fitch High School in Connecticut and Chesapeake High School in Maryland. Diggs played club soccer for James Lee – the father of current men's soccer player Mark Lee (Ellicott City, Md./Marriotts Ridge) – with the Pipeline Black West squad and served as a team captain throughout his club days. He was named 1^st Team All-Conference both in Connecticut as a senior and in Maryland as a junior, and was named 1^st Team All-State for his senior season at Fitch. 
 
Jake Howse is from Silver Spring, Maryland, and played high school soccer at Northwood High School where he was a four-year starter and captain as a junior and senior while playing in the Regional Final as a junior. He played club soccer for Achilles FC 02 out of Washington D.C. throughout high school. Then, during his 2021-22 gap year, he played and trained with the Future Monarchs of Maryland.
 
Sam Blumberger is from Colchester, Connecticut and played high school soccer at the Bacon Academy where he was a four-year starter and named 1^st Team All-Conference and Offensive Player of the Year in 2021.  Blumberger also played lacrosse and basketball at Bacon and earned All-Conference accolades in both sports.  He played club soccer for Southeast Soccer Club and graduated from Bacon Academy with High Honors with Distinction. 
 
Eli Simonette is from Cape Carteret, North Carolina and played high school soccer at Croatan High School under former Bloomsburg University Head Coach Paul Payne.  During his high school career, Eli earned individual honors of North Carolina All-State as a Junior and Senior, 1^st Team All-Conference three times, and All-Region four times. Eli was also named Conference Most Outstanding player as a junior and senior and won a State Championship during his high school career. Eli played club soccer for UK Elite and is currently undecided on a major.
 
Braden Alicea is from Huntington Valley, Pennsylvania and played high school soccer for Lower Moreland High School. During his high school career, he was named 1^st Team All-Suburban One and 1^st Team All-Montgomery County as a junior and senior while winning the Suburban One League Championship in 2021 and serving as a team captain the last two seasons. Alicea is a member of the National Honor Society and plays club for the Lower Merion SC Invictus team that is currently ranked #2 Nationally.  He plans on majoring in Business Administration with a concentration in Finance.
 
Aidan Huhn is from Brick, New Jersey and attended Point Pleasant Boro High School. While playing high school soccer Aidan was a four-year starter and served as a captain his senior season. He was named 1^stTeam All-Division, 3^rd Team All-Conference and 3^rd Team All-Ocean County as a senior. Recently, Aidan was named the Mayor and Council of Point Pleasant "Male Athlete of the Year" and has served as the treasurer of his high school's National Honor Society.  Aidan captained and played club soccer for the Liverpool FCIA Shore team and will study Business Management with a concentration in Finance here at Bloomsburg.
 
Ben Starner is from Mechanicsburg, Pennsylvania played soccer for East Pennsboro High School. During his high school career, he was named 1^st Team All-Mid-Penn as a junior and senior. Ben served as team captain as a junior and senior and was named team MVP his final two seasons. He is currently ranked 10^thAll-Time in points at East Pennsboro.  Ben is a four-year National Honor Society member and will graduate with a 4.0 GPA.  He plays club soccer for CASA 04 Elite and plans on studying Mass Communication.
 
Kyle Miller is from Etters, Pennsylvania and is a graduate of Redland High School. Miller has played for the PA Classics MLS Next team throughout his high school career and has been a consistent starter on a team that progressed to the MLS Next Cup. Miller graduated from Redland with Distinguished Honors and he intends on studying Business Administration with a concentration in Finance at Bloomsburg University.
 
Sean Blatz is from Whispering Pines, North Carolina. He attended Union Pines High School and played for his dad Coach Ray Blatz during his high school career. Blatz was named 1^st Team All-Conference and 1^stTeam All-Region as a Junior and Senior. During his last two seasons, Blatz was named Conference and Regional Goalkeeper of the Year. Blatz plays club soccer for Wake FC 03 and plans on majoring in Professional Sales and Marketing while at Bloomsburg.
 
Brett Howard is from Frenchtown, New Jersey. He attended Delaware Valley High School and played alongside current BUMS player Michael Gonzalez (Milford, N.J./Delaware Valley Regional).  While in high school, Howard was named 1^st Team All-Central Jersey and 3^rd Team All-State as a senior.  He garnered Offensive Player of the Year honors in 2021 and graduated with a 3.8 GPA.  Howard played club soccer for YMS United Premier 02 and intends to major in Business Administration with a concentration in Management while a student at Bloomsburg.
 
Jaliyl Melvin is from Mount Holly, New Jersey.  He attended Rancocas Valley Regional High School and is a former teammate of current BUMS player Teagan Wallace (Lumberton, N.J./Rancocas Valley Regional).  During his high school career, Melvin was a four-year varsity player and was recognized as a top underrated freshman and sophomore in New Jersey.  During his senior season at Rancocas Valley, Jaliyl was named 1^st Team All-Conference and Conference MVP, 3^rd Team All-South Jersey and 3^rd Team All-State.  He plays club soccer for Real JFC NJ and will be an Art Studio major here at Bloomsburg.
 
Josh Lehman is from New Cumberland, Pennsylvania and attended West Shore Christian Academy where he was a four-year starter on the soccer team.  As a junior and senior, he led the team as captain and to the CCAC Championship.  He was named 1^st Team All-Conference as a senior while tallying 32 goals and 19 assists in his final season.  Not only did Josh play soccer, but he also excelled on the basketball court as he holds his high school's scoring record with 1597 points and is a PIAA Track and Field State qualifier in the javelin. Lehman played club soccer for Keystone FC and is currently an undeclared major.
 
Keefer Calkins is from Bath, New York and attended Haverling High School where he tallied 50 goals and 14 assists during his senior season and eclipsed 100 goals for a career.  Throughout his final two high school seasons, Calkins was named 1^st Team All-State, 1^st Team All-Greater Rochester and 1^st Team All-Conference as a junior and senior. As a senior, he was named Section V "Player of the Year" during the same season his team competed in the 2021 State Championship match.  Keefer played club soccer for the Bath Blast Blue Devils and intends to study Professional Sales and Marketing here at Bloomsburg.
 
Kody Besser is from Forked River, New Jersey where he attended Lacey Township High School and was a four-year varsity soccer player.  During his senior season at Lacey, he was named 1^st Team All-Conference and Conference MVP, Ocean County (NJ) and Divisional "Player of the Year", and ultimately 1^st Team All-State.  Besser plays club soccer for PDA Shore Thiago 04 and was named to the "Top 11 Team" of the USYS Regionals in 2021 out of over 2000 athletes.
 
Shay Gillen is from Archbald, Pennsylvania and attended Valley View High School where he was a four-year member of the National Honor Society and four-year member of the soccer program. During his high school career, Gillen garnered 1^st Team All-Lackawanna Conference as a junior and senior, and during his 2021 senior season was named the Conference "Most Valuable Player" and subsequently to the Pennsylvania Soccer Association All-State Team.  Following his All-State selection, Gillen was honored as a 2021 United Soccer Coaches East Region II All-American. Gillen has played soccer for Lehigh Valley United Black and played in two US Youth Soccer National Championships with LVU.

Zach Morales is from Orefield, Pennsylvania and attended Parkland High School, which is where he played alongside current Bloomsburg men's soccer player Alex Wilsterman (Orefield, Pa./Parkland). While in high school, Morales was named 2^nd Team All-EPC as a junior and senior and was a member of the Skyline Division Champions in 2019 and 2021.  Morales also plays club soccer for PA Dominion 04 and will be competing in the Club National event once again this summer. Morales graduated from Parkland as a PLTW Biomedical Science Graduate and will be a pre-med major at Bloomsburg.