BOSTON – Northeastern men's soccer head coach Chris Gbandi is eager to welcome eight newcomers to the Huskies' 2019 roster, hailing from nearby Brookline and Massachusetts to as far as south Florida, Brazil and Germany. 

"I would like to thank my assistant coaches and staff – Cam Omsberg (our recruiting coordinator), Stefan Defregger, Charlton Muhlauri and John Montanaro – for their hard work in putting this class together," said Gbandi. "We are extremely excited about this 2019 class and believe they have a chance to make a huge impact on our program."
 
Meet the Northeastern men's soccer team's newest class of Huskies:

KEEPERS
• Colby Hegarty (Upton, Massachusetts):  Played four years in goal at Nipmuc Regional High School ... Captained Nipmuc during his junior and senior year ... Three-time Central Massachusetts Champion ... 2017 Massachusetts State champion ... Brings leadership and poise to the Huskies' lineup.

DEFENSIVE MIDFIELD
• Bernardo Gracindo (Rio de Janeiro, Brazil):  Competed for two years at Montverde Academy (Montverde, Florida) before committing to the Huskies ... Played as a midfielder and defender at Montverde, earning the most minutes on Montverde's high school national championship squad.

• Kharym Florvil (Lake Worth, Florida):  Arrives at Northeastern after finishing a post-grad year at the Taft School (Watertown, Connecticut) ... Played center back for the American Heritage School (Boca Raton, Florida) ... Earned All-County First Team and FACA All-State honors ... Wore the captain's armband while helping American Heritage to the state championship during his senior year.

ATTACKING MIDFIELD
• Jacques Baldwin (Brookline, Massachusetts):   Competed for local Brookline High School, tallying more than 10 goals and assists during every season ... Four-time All-League selection ... Two-time All-State mention (junior and senior seasons) ... Suited up for GPS Massachusetts on the club scene, scoring 30 goals and earning league Most Valuable Player honors.

• Ty Benjaafar (Minneapolis, Minneapolis):  Four-year varsity student-athlete at Minneapolis Washburn Senior High School ... Competed as a left and right wing midfielder ... Posted double digits in goals and assists during 2018, earning All-State First Team and Mr. Soccer honors ... Played two seasons for Minnesota TwinStars FC, earning all-star recognition.

• Andrew Karalis (Belmont, Massachusetts):  Played center midfield for Belmont High School (Belmont, Massachusetts) ... Tallied 16 goals and 15 assists across 23 starts, helping Belmont reach the league finals ... Earned Team Most Valuable Player, All-League and state All-Star honors ... Spent his club career with the Boston Bolts, where he served as team captain.

• Liam Murphy (Weston, Fla.):   Four-year student-athlete at Cypress Bay High School ... Competed for Weston FC, where he was a strong academy player ... Earned the opportunity to be pooled onto the U.S. Under-17 national team roster.

STRIKERS
• Benjamin Klingen (Wadersloh, Germany):   Club player at SV Lippstaft 08 in Germany ... Made nine appearances as a 19-year-old forward, netting a goal.

Northeastern will open its 2019 season on Friday, Aug. 30, when the Huskies play the first match of a men's-women's soccer doubleheader at Parsons Field. The men's squad will kick off against Massachusetts at 2 p.m.