Six RDP Soccer players awarded All-Conference honours

Red Deer Polytechnic and the Athletics department are pleased to recognize strikers Sein Furuyama and Eduardo Crespo, and midfielders Ajdin Sarcevic, and Sofia and Estel Quinteros, as well as goalkeeper Jared St. Thomas as Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) All-Conference award recipients.

The three Kings players that were recognized were a huge part to the success behind the Kings soccer program this year. St. Thomas was always counted on to make the big save when the team needed the most. Sarcevic was known for his free-kicking skills but also was clutch for the team when he would send a
striker off to the races to score a goal. Lastly, Crespo was counted on to be the big man and control the ball upfront.

All three Queens players were a crucial part to the Queens successful season this year. Furuyama was always called upon to score one to six goals in a game for Red Deer and lead the offence. The Quinteros’ sisters were a huge part of the Queens defensive midfielder and were asked to shut down some of the top
offensive players in this league.

Sein Furuyama (Forward)

Sein Furuyama is a five-foot tall striker out of Kobe, Japan and is currently in enrolled in Academic Upgrading at the polytechnic. In her first three games in the ACAC, she struck for eight goals on 12 shots. Six of those came in one game against the Ambrose University Lions. She would follow that up with another six-goal performance against the Medicine Hat Rattlers and added two assists in this game for a total of 14 points. At this point of the season, she was on pace to coast past the ACAC Single Season Goal Record of 26. On October 16, she would break the record with her 27th goal and added two more against the Olds College Broncos in the season finale.

Queens Head Coach Mazhiar Peyrow says he is proud of everything she accomplishes in her first ACAC season. “Sein has been a massive asset to our team. We new we had something special coming from Japan when I recruited her, but she completely exceeded our expectations in every way. She had to work hard on and off the field as she was set back because of her language barrier.”

Furuyama finished off the regular season with three Fas Gas RDP Queens Player of the Week.

Estel Quinteros (Midfielder)

Estel Quinteros is a five-foot-two midfielder from Edmonton and is in her second year of the Bachelor of Science in Nursing program. She finished off her season with eight goals, seven of them came against the Lions, and six assists. She started every game for the Queens in that midfield position and completed the season with 22 points on the year.

Peyrow says the Queens can achieve a lot more when Estel is on the pitch. “Estel brings composure to the Queens lineup. She brings that level of pace and aggression. She can find holes and sends through balls to split the opponents defense line really well to achieve what we want to do.”

Estel Quinteros was awarded the Fas Gas RDP Athlete of the Week for September 19, 2022, for her three goals, one assist and her defensive efforts that helped the Queens not allow a shot on net.

Sofia Quinteros (Midfielder)

Sofia Quinteros is a sister to Estel and is in her second year of the Bachelor of Science in Psychology program. She is a five-foot-five midfielder who went to high school at St. Francis Xavier. As more of a defensive asset, she still found the back of the net five times and assisted on seven goal to cap off the regular season. She found her offensive groove near the end as she is currently on a five game point streak (3G, 6A).

The veteran coach of the Queens says Sofia is a huge asset to the program, specifically the defensive midfielder position. “Sofia just brings composure and awareness to the game. She is probably one of the smartest players for soccer sense on our squad. Lastly, Sofia has a great form of leadership as she is one of our captains on the team this year.”

Sofia and the Queens will play their first playoff game this weekend in the semi-finals at the ACAC Championships in Raymond. They will await the winner of the game between the Keyano College Huskies the Lethbridge College Kodiaks in the first quarterfinal match on Friday, October 28.

St. Thomas, Sarcevic, Crespo – ACAC All Conference

Jared St. Thomas (Goalkeeper)

Jared St. Thomas is a six-foot-two goalkeeper out of Lacombe and is currently in his second year of the Kinesiology Fitness and Health program at Red Deer Polytechnic. He started 10 games this season where he had a 4-1-4 (W-L-T) record. St. Thomas finished the regular season with a .690 save percentage and a 1.89 goals-against-average.

Head Coach Admir Sarcevic says it was nice to see him make that jump to the collegiate level as he coached St. Thomas when he was younger. “He is a solid goalkeeper. I personally know him as I coached him at the youth level, so we have a special relationship. He has proven to us this year when he was making big saves to keep the Kings in it that he is a top-class goalkeeper.”

St. Thomas will be looking on to the future as he leaves the program after this season is finished.

Ajdin Sarcevic (Midfielder)

Ajdin Sarcevic was the captain for this year’s Kings team as a six-foot-two midfielder. He is currently in his second year of the Business Administration General program and is from Red Deer. He started nine out of the ten games and finished with seven goals and six assists on the season. His biggest game came against the SAIT Trojans in the season opener when he scored a hat trick.

Admir Sarcevic, the head coach of the Kings, says what he brings to the Kings program shows that he is a key player to this team. “I think his stats and his record shows how important he is to our team. He has lots of experience as he played professional soccer in Europe.”

Sarcevic and the Kings will begin their post-season in the quarterfinals at 10:00 am on Friday, October 28.

Eduardo Crespo (Forward)

Eduardo Crespo is from Mococa, Sao Paulo, Brazil and is a six-foot-three striker. He is in second year and is enrolled in Business at the polytechnic. He started five out of the 10 games and finished with three goals and four assists. His three goals came off the bench in the second match of the season when the Kings played the Ambrose University Lions.

Head Coach Admir Sarcevic says he is simply something special for the Kings soccer program. “He definitely brings what we need up front. He is tall, big and is able to control the ball then lay it off to one of our wingers or midfielders. Just the energy and attitude he brings is very important.”

After the season is complete, Crespo will join the basketball team and compete with the Kings in ACAC competition.”

Red Deer Polytechnic and the Athletics department would like to congratulate these men and women on a job well done this year and wish them all the luck at the ACAC Championships this weekend in Raymond.

Sein Furuyama is named the ACAC South Rookie and Player of the Year

Red Deer Polytechnic Athletics and the Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) is pleased to announce Sein Furuyama of the Red Deer Polytechnic Queens has been selected as the 2022-23 ACAC Female Soccer Rookie of the Year.

Furuyama made a name for herself in her debut with the Queens in ACAC regular season competition. She scored two goals against the always tough SAIT Trojans. After she went silent on the goal sheet against the University of Alberta-Augustana Vikings, she made up for it by scoring six goals in back-to-back games. This set her up nicely and gave her the chance to break the ACAC Single Season Scoring Record. She would have one more six goal game when the Queens battled with the Ambrose University Lions. Furuyama scored an impressive 12 goals against the Lions in their two matches against each other. This put her two back of the 26-goal record held by Kayla Michaels of the NAIT Ooks.

Nine days later, Furuyama would make history scoring two goals against the Rattlers to give her 27 on the year. She would add two more goals to her total against the Olds College Broncos in the season finale to extend her record to 29 goals. The rookie striker also was a huge reason why the Queens team was able to break the ACAC Most Goals in a Season Record by scoring 89 over a 12-game season. Head Coach Mazhiar Peyrow says he was quite impressed with how she performed on the field but also off the field as well.

“Having a player like Sein is unbelievable. It was a big moment for the Queens to have an international player like her. She had to work extremely hard on and off the pitch as she was set back because of her language barrier. I’m so proud of her for all of her accomplishments in both the ACAC season as well as academically.”

Furuyama was born in Kobe, Japan and currently in her first year of Academic Upgrading at the Red Deer Polytechnic. She will be looking forward to continuing her scoring ways at the ACAC Championships this weekend in Lethbridge in the first semi-final matchup on Saturday, October 29. Furuyama and the Queens will await the winner of the first quarterfinal on October 28 between the host team, the Lethbridge College Kodiaks, and the Keyano College Huskies.

Both these prestigious awards were recognized at the 2022 ACAC Women’s Soccer Championship hosted by Lethbridge College in Raymond, AB Thursday.

Mazhiar Peyrow

Mazhiar Peyrow is named the ACAC Women’s Soccer South Coach of the Year

The Alberta Colleges Athletic Conference (ACAC) and Red Deer Polytechnic Athletics is proud to announce Mazhiar Peyrow of the Red Deer Polytechnic Queens as the ACAC Women’s Soccer South Coach of the Year.

Peyrow was the assistant for the Kings for four years. He was a part of the coaching staff that took the first team from central Alberta to the Canadian Collegiate Athletics Association (CCAA) nationals in Toronto where the Kings placed sixth in the country. After the Kings coach at that time left, he stepped into the head
coaching role and recruited heavily for that year, but unfortunately, they were unable to compete due to COVID-19. The opportunity came available for Peyrow to become the head coach of the Queens but also stay on as an assistant coach to the men’s soccer program at Red Deer Polytechnic. In his first year as head
coach of the Queens, he was able to lead the team to a bronze medal at the 2021 ACAC Championships.

Randy Stewart, Manager of Athletics & Student Life at Red Deer Polytechnic, says Peyrow has taken the Queens Soccer program to an unprecedented level since taking over in February of 2020.

“While the change has come over time, there has been undeniable steps forward with obvious success over the past two seasons. His positive outlook, innate ability to adapt and modify, as well as his ability to motivate student-athletes to strive together for a common goal have been outstanding.”

Peyrow is currently in his 7th season with Red Deer Polytechnic’s soccer programs. He has a silver from 2019 and a bronze medal from 2021. He will be looking to add a gold medal to his resume this weekend with the Queens playing in the semi-final match on Saturday, October 29.

This prestigious award was recognized at the 2022 ACAC Women’s Soccer Championship hosted by Lethbridge College in Raymond, AB Thursday evening.