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The Dartmouth
July 28, 2025 | Latest Issue
The Dartmouth

Men's soccer welcomes six recruits to fill holes left by seniors

Dartmouth's men's soccer team will welcome six recruits with the Class of 2012, according to a recent announcement. Following a successful fall 2007campaign, the Big Green (11-4-3, 5-1-1 Ivy) will lose six seniors at graduation.

"Our whole senior class was pretty influential," goalkeeper Sean Milligan '09 said.

The back four have been an asset to the team over the past few seasons. Though the defense retains starting goalkeeper Milligan, the team will lose two starting defenders, Ale Frischeisen '08 and Tom Lobben '08. Only two sophomores and two freshmen are currently listed as defensemen.

"They're huge losses," Milligan said.

The Big Green will also lose three starting midfielders, each of whom played in all 17 games last season -- Mike Ordonez '08, Nick Christman '08 and Brian Lappas '08.

Nine midfielders will remain on the team for the fall 2008 season.

The team will gain three defensemen -- Michael Donelan '12, Arthur Harris '12 and Nick Pappas '12 -- this fall.

Donelan hails from Andover, Mass., and attended Philips Andover Academy. Donelan, who lettered in soccer all four years of high school, earned first team all-New England prep. In addition, he was a member of the Juventus soccer club team, which won the Massachusetts State Cup in 2007.

Harris, who is listed as both a defensemen and a midfielder, is from Farmington, Mass., and attended Noble & Greenough School.

Harris, who also lettered in soccer all four years of high school, had a six-year streak on the Region 1 Olympic Development Program team and was a four-year member of the U.S. National Team pool. He lead his club team, the FC Greater Boston Bolts, to a national championship in 2005.

Pappas comes to Hanover after a strong career on the Phoenix Country Day Varsity soccer squad and Cisco Soccer club team. Pappas resides in Scottsdale, Arizona. He was a four-year ODP team member in Arizona and was twice elected to the Region IV ODP pool.

The Big Green will not lose any forwards, but will gain forward Luckymore Mkonsana '12 from Bulawayo, Zimbabwe.

Mkonsana attended Mzingkiana High School, where he first met the Dartmouth head coach Jeff Cook, but Mkonsana could not complete the required entrance tests for Dartmouth in time to enter with the Class of 2011. He transferred to Kimball Union Academy, a New Hampshire boarding school just 20 minutes outside of Hanover, in order to complete college entrance exams.

"One of our alumni is a coach in the area [in Zimbabwe], so Jeff Cook was over there with him, and he identified Luckymore," assistant coach Trevor Gorman said.

Mkonsana led the Kimball Union squad to a New England class B championship, and the team finished with a 16-2-1 record.

"[Mkonsana's] a great kid and supposed to be really good," Milligan said. "We're excited about him."

Dartmouth picks up another forward, Maarten Van Ess '12, of Marlborough, Mass. Van Ess earned two all-state honors and was named three times to the league all-star selections.

Van Ess and Donelan competed together on the Juventus Soccer Club team.

"We're pretty excited. We have two pretty good forwards coming in, which has always been our weakness," Milligan said.

Adam Rice '12, a midfielder from Manalapan, New Jersey, joins the team next year from Manalapan High School, where he lettered in soccer all four years. Rice was all-state in New Jersey for two years, played in the New Jersey senior all-star showcase and was a three-time selection for the all-class A North team.

"We think overall the class is very good top from bottom; we're very excited about it," Gorman said.

Dartmouth will begin the fall 2008 season against national powerhouse Notre Dame on Sept. 5 in South Bend, Ind. The Big Green fell 2-0 to the Fighting Irish this spring.