June 1, 2009
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Penn State men's soccer head coach Barry Gorman has announced the signing of forward Rafael Faria to a National Letter of Intent. The Miami, Fla. native will enroll in the fall and begin playing for the Nittany Lions in the 2009 season.
Faria comes to Penn State after a distinguished high school career at Gulliver Preparatory School in Miami. In 2009, he was named first team all-county and all-state, team most valuable player, and the Miami Dade Player of the Year after a season in which he tallied 21 goals and 19 assists. As a junior, Faria posted 24 goals and 20 assists en route to First Team All-Dade County and offensive player of the year honors.
At the club level, Faria won a Disney Soccer Showcase Championship this year as a member of Kendall Soccer Coalition Miami FC Developmental Academy U-18 Team. In 2008, he led the U-17 team to the Y-League finals and a state championship.
Prior to attending Gulliver, Faria matriculated at I.E.A in Caracas, Venezuela for his freshman and sophomore years. There he totaled 34 goals and 28 assists and was selected to the state team for Distrito Metropolitano and most valuable player after both seasons.
A former of the Venezuelan U-17 National pool, Faria played club soccer for Centro Italo Venezolano, leading it to the U-17 national finals in 2006.
Faria will look to make an impact on what promises to be an explosive Nittany Lion front line in 2009, which will include two-time All-Big Ten forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.), 2008 leading scorer Treavor Gelsinger (Shady Grove, Pa.), veteran strikers Jacobo Vera (Pamplona, Spain) and Vincent Salvatico (Chester Springs, Pa.), and talented sophomore Corey Hertzog (Reading, Pa.).
Faria joins defender Brian Forgue (Glenmoore, Pa.), a two-time NSCAA High School All-American who led Downington West to a PIAA Championship in 2008, as part of the Nittany Lions' 2009 recruiting class.
Faria will wear jersey No. 9 for the Nittany Lions.