GOLDEN, Colo. – Colorado School of Mines head men's soccer coach Greg Mulholland has announced the addition of 13 student-athletes who will be joining the Orediggers for the 2024 season.
 
The class is comprised of student-athletes from nine different states including 10 first year players and three transfers with one from the junior college ranks and two from other four-year institutions. The breakdown is balanced among the class with the addition of a goalkeeper, six forwards, three midfielders and a trio of defenders by primary position as several newcomers have experience at multiple positions on the field.
 
Josh Ary // 5'8" // Forward/Defender // Firestone, Colo. // Real Colorado ECNL
Leading off this year's class, Ary comes to Golden from Niwot High School where he was a two-year letter winner and a prolific player on offense, scoring 28 goals with 27 assists including a junior season that featured 13 of each. During the 2022-23 season, he cleaned up during the awards tour being named Colorado Longs Peak Soccer First Team All-Conference, Longs Peak Soccer Player of the Year, First Team All-State and the Longmont Daily Times-Call Soccer Player of the Year. A member of Real Colorado ECNL on the club tour, he has served three times as team captain and led the way to a trio of ECNL Mountain Conference titles and was named to played in the 2022 ECNL Boys National Selection Game in St. Louis, Missouri. Off the field, Ary is a three-time honor roll recipient and two-time Academic All-State honoree. He plans to major in Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Abou Bakar Berthe // 5'9" // 180 // Forward // Vancouver, Wash. // Clark College
A native of Mali by way of Washington State, Berthe will join Mines in the fall following two seasons at Clark College. During his time with the Penguins, he appeared in 29 matches with 10 starts, scoring nine goals and adding nine assists for 27 points on 40 shots with 26 on goal over 1,302 minutes played. A graduate of Castors High School, he earned the Sigma Scholarship and plans to major in Mining Engineering at Mines.
 
Ethan Huet // 6'1" // 185 // Midfielder // Winter Springs, Fla. // Florida Kraze Krush ECNL
Coming to the mountains of Colorado all the way from the Sunshine State,  Huet will arrive at Mines following a four-year varsity career at Lyman High School. Over his last two seasons, he scored 12 goals with 12 assists, with eight of each coming during his junior season and was a penalty kick specialist while also serving as team captain. At the club level, Huet competes for Florida Kraze Krush ECNL and Kraze United UPSL. Off the field, he ranks third in his graduating class and is an AP Scholar with distinction having completed 17 AP courses and is a National Merit Commended Student. He intends to study Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Jaden Igarta // 6'3" // 185 // Forward // Portland, Ore. // Oregon Premier FC
Igarta becomes the latest in a long line of Orediggers hailing from the Pacific Northwest after he prepped at Ida B. Wells Barnett High School in Portland. A your-year letter winner on the pitch and two-timer on the hardwood, he scored 22 goals with six assists in 17 matches as a senior while finding the back of the net 35 times over the course of his career. In his senior campaign, Igarta earned First Team All-PIL honors along with Second Team All-State recognition as he led all of Oregon Class 6A in goals. On the club circuit with Oregon Premier FC, he won the 2023 Oregon State Cup Championship. Off the field, Igarta carries a 4.0 GPA and has been named to the honor roll for the entirety of his studies. A 2022 MAC scholar-athlete finalist, he will be one his graduating class's valedictorians and intends to study Statistics or Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Jimmy Koufidakis // 6'0" // 195 // Forward // Mesa, Ariz. // Northwest Nazarene // Arizona Arsenal 02 ECNL
The second of two transfers in this year's class, Koufidakis comes to Golden following four seasons at another Division II institution Northwest Nazarene in Idaho. During his time with the Nighthawks, he appeared in 52 matches with 25 starts, recording eight goals and six assists for 22 points on 61 shots with 27 on goals across 2,170 minutes. He recorded a career-best four assists in 2021 and in 2022 scored five times, including a game-winner against Western Oregon as part of a two-goal performance. That season, the Nighthawks also claimed the GNAC championship and advanced to the Round of Eight in the NCAA Division II Men's Soccer Championship, falling in the regional final to eventual national runner-up CSU Pueblo. Twice he earned GNAC Offensive Player of the Week honors and was an Honorable Mention All-Conference selection as well as a College Sports Communicators Academic All-District honoree. Before NNU, Koufidakis prepped at Red Mountain High School in Arizona and scored 22 times with two assists in 17 matches as a senior, leading RMHS to the Arizona Class 6A semifinals and earning All-Region honors. Off the field, he was an ASB Student Executive and the Foreign Language Student of the Year. He intends to study Marketing at Mines.
 
Jake Macha // 5'10" // 160 // Midfielder // Austin, Texas // Lonestar ECNL
Macha comes to Mines by way of Austin High School where he was a Class 6A First Team All-District selection as a junior and senior while earning Honorable Mention laurels as a sophomore. He plays for Lonestar ECNL on the club circuit. A three-time recipient of Trustee Award in the classroom, Macha plans to study Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Kian Mueller // 5'10" // Midfielder/Forward // 160 // Corvallis, Ore. // Oregon Premier FC
The second of two newcomers from the Beaver State, Mueller will arrive at Mines following a prep career at Crescent Valley High School. A two-year letter winner, he scored eight goals and assisted on a further nine in his senior campaign and was named Mid-Willamette Valley Conference Player of the Year and Oregon Class 5A First Team All-State. On the club level, Mueller plays for Oregon Premier FC, where during the 2023-24 season he scored 15 goals with 17 assists for 47 points. Off the field, he is a member of the National Honor Society and has been named to the Honor Roll throughout for the duration of his time at CVHS. Mueller plans to study Electrical Engineering at Mines.
 
Charlie Newberry // 6'1" // 175 // Defender // Frisco, Texas // Dayton // FC Dallas ECNL
The second of two Texans coming to Golden this fall, Newberry arrives at Mines following a 2023 season in which he redshirted at Division I Dayton. Prior to joining the Flyers, Newberry prepped at Memorial High School where he scored 12 goals as a junior and was a First Team All-District honoree and three-time Most Valuable Player (Team, Offensive, Defensive). At the club level, he played for FC Dallas ECNL and won a pair of conference titles with them while also spending time with the U19 MLS Next club. Newberry intends to major in engineering at Mines.
 
Dennis Polzin // 6'3" // 180 // Goalkeeper // Castle Pines, Colo. // Flatirons Rush
A local product from Valor Christian High School, Polzin adds depth to the goalkeeping corps for the Orediggers in 2024. A four-year letter winner and an All-State Honorable Mention selection, he finished his prep career with a .401 GAA including a mark of .309 during his freshman season. On the club tour, he has played for Real Colorado and Flatirons Rush. Off the field, he is a member of the National Honor Society and will graduate Cum Laude. Polzin plans to study Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Noah Roles // 6'2" // 185 // Defender // Rio Rancho, N.M. // New Mexico United Soccer Academy
Roles will become the latest player from the Land of Enchantment to come to Mines by way of V. Sue Cleveland High School where he was a three-year letter winner. During his prep career, he led VSCHS to a New Mexico State Championship and earned First Team All-Metro and First Team All-State recognition while also serving as a team captain. Off the pitch, he was a member of the National Honor Society, DECA and an Academic All-State honoree. Roles played for New Mexico United Soccer Academy on the club circuit and plans to major in engineering at Mines.
 
Smith Russell // 5'11" // Forward/Midfielder // Bellevue, Wash. // Seattle United ECNL
Russell comes to Golden as the second Evergreen State product in this year's class following a productive prep career at Interlake High School. During his four seasons as a letter winner, he scored 13 times with 23 times assists including 13 assists as a junior and six goals as a senior. A two-time team captain, he was an Honorable Mention selection each of his first three seasons. On the club scene, Russel played for Seattle United ECNL. He plans to major in Economics at Mines.
 
Brady Scheinfeld // 6'3" // 170 // Defender // Atlanta, Georgia // Concorde Fire ECNL
Scheinfeld comes to Golden from the Peach State and will be the third Georgia native on the active roster in 2024. A four-year letter winner as a center back, he helped lead Midtown High School to three Final Four appearances and one state runner-up finish. A highly decorated prep player, Scheinfeld earned All-Region honors three times, started with Second Team recognition in 2022 before posting back-to-back First Team season in 2023 and 2024, during which he was also named First Team All-State as well. On the club tour, he was a member of Concord Fire ECNL and was part of a team that won the ECNL North American Cup. Off the pitch, Scheinfeld was as decorated as he was on it, participating in the State Governor's Honors Program for Statistics & Math in 2021 and 2022, Winning the FBLA Introduction to Business State Contest on 2020-21, placing first in Midtown's science fair in 2022-23 with a micro hydro-electric turbine being the Special Award Winner of the City of Atlanta Regional Science & Engineering Fair – US Stockholm Junior Water Prize in 2022-23 and being a graduate of the MIT, Stanford, Princeton and Georgia Tech International Inspirit AI Program. He intends to major in Mechanical Engineering at Mines.
 
Lucas Taitt // 6'2" // 175 // Forward // Shawnee, Kan. // Kansas Rush ECNL - RL
Kansas has steadily become a pipeline to Golden as Taitt will be the third player from the state on the roster in 2024. A two-sport standout on the pitch as well as the track at Shawnee Mission Northwest High School, he earned a total of five letters between the sports and scored 33 times with 17 assists in his career, earning First Team All-Sunflower League honors along the way. On the club tour, he plays for the Kansas Rush ECNL. Off the field, Taitt was a three-time academic letter winner and intends to major in Computer Science at Mines.
 
Fans can keep up with Mines men's soccer on X and Instagram at @minesmsoc and @mines_msoc. They can also keep up with Colorado School of Mines Athletics all year long on Facebook, X and Instagram using the handle @MinesAthletics.