Central College is receiving yet another Knight. After Jacob Sinohui signed to play soccer for the Dutch last year, senior Ricardo Correa decided to follow in his footsteps. Tuesday afternoon, Ricardo signed his letter-of-intent to Central, located in the small community of Pella, Iowa. Central is a Division III school with an enrollment of 1,250 students and competes in the Iowa Intercollegiate Athletic Conference.

Ricardo has always dreamed of of playing soccer at the collegiate level and began working to make the dream a reality before starting his junior season.

“I talked to my club coach about [getting recruited], and he said I needed to get ready all junior year. Get film done, start talking to coaches, start visiting schools.”

The senior had offers from four different colleges, but narrowed the search down to two Midwestern schools toward the beginning of this year: Central and Greenville.

“Both were very nice places, I loved them. Great people, great atmosphere.”

It wasn’t until very recently that Ricardo made his final decision where he would attend.

“What led me to decide on going to Central was the visit. When I visited the campus, it was amazing. The people were friendly, and like I said before the atmosphere was great. A player from [ACP’s team] last year, Jacob Sinohui, played there, which led to me wanting to build more chemistry with him and a couple other players I met. Overall, I thought it was my best fit.”

As he heads off to college, Mr. Correa will not forget about ACP’s magical run in the 2017-18 season. The team made its longest postseason bid yet, advancing all the way to the finals before losing in a heart-breaker to Yuma Catholic.

“Man, this season was a blast. Ended up coming short, but everyone always was trying to reach the next level… this year, playing against high-caliber teams led to the self-confidence of the team. Knowing that we could compete against Division I teams brought a lot of confidence to the team.”

While Ricardo is well-known around campus for his soccer prowess, he is on another “team” of far more importance.

“Something you probably don’t know about me is that I am in the National Guard. I’ll be training this summer for the military. It’s something great to be a part of, having that pride and serving your country.”

Ricardo joined the National Guard shortly after his 18th birthday.

“Friends commented about the National Guard, telling me that it’s a great opportunity. You get your college paid, and get to serve your country. I thought it was an amazing idea, I joined, and have loved it since. It’s just awesome, that whole sense of having national pride.”

Congratulations to Ricardo on the achievement; according to the NCAA, only 5.6% of high school players go on to play at the collegiate level. He and his family should hold their heads high with pride.