Drexel University Athletics
Men's Soccer Welcomes Newcomers for 2026 Season
8/7/2026 11:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
PHILADELPHIA – Head coach Dave Castellanos and the Drexel men's soccer team welcome 12 newcomers for the 2026 season. The additions include four freshmen, and eight upperclassmen with experience.
Our recruiting philosophy is simple, Castellanos said. We build from home, recruiting the best local talent who understand what this area represents, then add transfers who genuinely want to be at Drexel. We aren't looking for the biggest names. We're looking for the right people, players who believe in our vision, embrace our standards, and are committed to building something bigger than themselves.
Gustavo Santana, Daniel Frye, Brendan Welsh, and Eddie Davis make up the first-year class for the Dragons.
Gustavo Santana | M | Fr. | São Paulo, Brazil | Mercersburg Academy
Santana attended Mercersburg Academy in Mercersburg, PA, where he was a varsity athlete in soccer and track and field.
Daniel Frye | M | Fr. | Doylestown, Pa. | Central Bucks High School East
Frye was a four-year varsity player at Central Bucks East, where he was named to the 2023 PA All-State Team, three All-League First Teams, and Suburban One League MVP.
Brendan Welsh | M | Fr. | Warrington, Pa. | Archbishop Wood
Welsh played varsity soccer, lacrosse and track and field for Archbishop Wood. There he earned First Team All-Catholic League nominations three times and was the Catholic League Offensive Player of the Year his senior year.
Eddie Davis | F | Fr. | Kirkland, Wa. | Eastside Catholic
Davis was a four-year varsity member of the Eastside Catholic High School soccer team. He brings 16 years of playing experience as both a goalie and center back.
Peter Punchello, Daniel Celso, Sharif Mohammed, Tomislav Vrdoljak, Aamir Ketbache, Mekhi Wright, Ignacio Alberola and Jose Levy Lanando make up the Dragons incoming walk on and transfer class.
Peter Punchello | GK | Jr. | Jamison, Pa. | Bloomsburg
Punchello returns to the Philadelphia area after spending two seasons at Bloomsburg. There he started 17 games as a sophomore, finishing with an 8-3 record and leading the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference in save percentage (.803), shutouts (7), shutouts per game (.412%), goals against average (.741) and least goals against (12).
Daniel Celso | M | So. | Porto, Portugal | Cleveland State University
Celso joins the Dragons after a year at Cleveland State where he was a starter for the Vikings Horizon League Tournament Championship game. He was also a member of the U19 Regional and National Championship Teams for Portugal.
Sharif Mohammed | M | Jr. | Port St. Lucie, Fl. | West Texas A&M
Mohammed appeared in 35 games for West Texas A&M over two seasons. There he registered 42 shots and two assists over 2,028 minutes on the field. Mohammed was named to the Lone Star Conference Third Team All-Conference and All-Freshman Teams in his two seasons.
Tomislav Vrdoljak | M | Jr. | Frankfurt, Germany | Siena University
Vrdolijak appeared in 37 matches for Siena across two seasons, logging over 2,400 minutes. He played 67 minutes in the Saints MAAC Championship win over Sacred Heart.
Aamir Ketbache | D | Jr. | Frankfurt am Main, Germany | UMass Lowell
Ketbache started 10 games for UMass Lowell last year, finishing the year with 881 minutes played with a goal and an assist. A member of the U17 and U19 teams for FSV Frankfurt. He tallied two goals in four matches in the U17-Bundesliga.
Mekhi Wright | D | Jr. | Toronto, Canada | Lindenwood University
Wright joins the Dragons after two years at Lindenwood where he appeared in 40 games with 36 starts. He earned a silver medal in the 2022 Canada Summer Games.
Ignacio Alberola — GK | Sr. | Alicante, Spain | Augustana College
Alberola comes to Drexel with two seasons of experience at Augustana College. As a freshman, he finished two games with a perfect 1.000 save percentage, and as a sophomore, he had back-to-back shutouts.
Jose Levy Lanado — GK | Jr. | Mexico City, Mexico | NSU University School
Levy joins the Dragons with four years of varsity goalkeeping experience from his time at NSU University, where he won the state championships in 2019 and 2020.
Drexel will kick off the regular season on August 20 with a visit to Robert Morris.
