Colton O’Neill and Sasa Plavsic of the University of the Fraser Valley men’s soccer team will play for the Vancouver Whitecaps’ Premier Development League squad this summer.
Plavsic, a veteran midfielder, has been the Cascades’ leading scorer over the past three seasons with 22 goals. He’ll be suiting up with his third PDL team, having dressed for the Abbotsford Mariners and the Victoria Highlanders prior to joining Vancouver.
O’Neill, UFV’s 2011-12 male rookie of the year, plays right back. He also represented the Mariners before moving downtown to the Whitecaps.
Fellow Abbotsford product Gagan Dosanjh, a striker who plays for the UBC Thunderbirds, is also playing for the Whitecaps’ U23 side this summer.
The PDL is the top developmental men’s league in North America, with 65 teams in four conferences throughout the U.S. and Canada.
“I am very proud of both Sasa and Colton, they will have a great experience under Stuart (Neely, Vancouver PDL head coach) this summer,” commented UFV head coach Alan Errington. “The PDL is a great level of play for CIS student-athletes to improve their skills and be in top physical condition for the fall.”
The Whitecaps U23s opened their PDL campaign last Friday, edging the Kitsap Pumas 2-1 at UBC’s Thunderbird Stadium.