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The Mount Vernon Nazarene College men's soccer team has added another recruit to its roster for the 2002 season with the addition of Justin Thompson.

Thompson, a midfielder from Mason, Ohio, will join the Cougars after attending the University of Cincinnati for a year and not playing soccer. The former standout at Mason High School recorded five goals and seven assists in 10 matches as a senior in 2000. He was a two-time All-Conference First Team selection and was named to the All-City All-Star team in 2000.

"I first saw Justin play a year ago and thought that he would be a nice addition to our program," said MVNC head coach Paul Furey. "Although he opted to go elsewhere then for his major, I am glad he remembered us and wanted a chance to play here. He is a hard-working midfielder with good technical ability, and he will certainly bring depth to a relatively young midfield that we have. He is a good fit to our school and will be a welcomed personality to our squad."

In addition to playing soccer at Mason, Thompson also participated in club soccer. He was also active in student government.

"There were several factors in my decision to transfer," said Thompson. "I really liked the campus, and all of the people there were extremely friendly. Plus, I wanted to play soccer. I also needed to get away from my hometown and go out and meet some new people and make new friends."

The Cougars are coming off a 14-6-2 season in 2001. The team advanced to the semifinals of the NAIA Region IX Tournament for the second straight year, and MVNC also finished fifth in the highly-competitive American Mideast Conference with an 11-4-1 conference mark.