DeKALB | NIU men’s soccer has officially named seven new recruits for the 2011-2012 season.

The team is looking to build on a 9-6-2 record during the 2010-2011 campaign. Head coach Eric Luzzi hopes the new recruits will not only bring depth to the team, but that they will be able to make an immediate impact when the season begins next fall.

“I think there are a couple guys who potentially have a chance to come in from day one and challenge for a starting spot,” Luzzi said. “But I would expect all the guys to be competing for time at some point during their first year or two.”

Assistant coach Garrett Biller is also pleased with the incoming class and what they bring to the table.

“They’re going to provide us with a lot of depth,” Biller said. “Any team that wants to make it far in a season or in the national tournament needs a lot of depth with guys competing in every spot.”

The recruits that Luzzi and Biller feel can have the biggest immediate impact on the team are midfielder/forward Isaac Kannah of Plymouth, Minn., and defender Dusty Page from Germantown, Wisc.

Although the team has recruits from out of state, Luzzi likes to bring guys in that are familiar with NIU.

“We want kids that really want to be here,” Luzzi said. “Some guys we look at specifically because they live pretty close to here. Every guy we get wants to be at NIU and be part of our program.”

The incoming freshman class looks to move forward with the coaching staff’s main goal: winning the NCAA Championship.

“We have some very high expectations for our program and we want to make sure we meet them,” Biller said. “We’re all very excited to develop in the spring and get the new guys in here as fast as we can.”

Coach Luzzi is hoping this class will help NIU in its rise to become an elite program.

“This class continues our upwards trajectory as a program in terms of being able to attract some club players, some of the top players from across the country,” Luzzi said. “We also make sure that we stay true to how we really have been over the last number of years in terms of being a hard working team full of guys that care a lot. There’s still a lot of work to do this spring, but I’m really excited for the direction that we’re heading.”