Another Union Academy defender commits to Wake Forest

Another Philadelphia Union Academy college commitment, another ACC school.

U18 defender Mark McKenzie verbally committed to play college soccer at Wake Forest University, where he will join teammate Matthew Real in the fall of 2017. Academy defender Joseph DeZart is verbally committed to join the program in the fall of 2016.

The Demon Deacons were the top-seeded team in the NCAA Tournament this year but lost in the quarterfinals to Stanford. They have made the tourney 15 of the last 17 seasons, winning a national championship in 2007, when Michael Lahoud was on the team.

Union first-teamer Brian Carroll (2000-2002) also played college soccer at the Winston-Salem, North Carolina school.

McKenzie joined the Academy in its first season in the U.S. Development Academy as a member of the U14 team. He’s played in 61 games, started 51 times and scored four goals. At the U18 level he’s primarily played as a right back or center back. He played with Wilmington Rangers and Delaware Rush prior to joining the Union Academy.

He was called into a U.S. U16 camp in June.

McKenzie is the latest on a growing list of ACC commitments for players in the Union Academy. U18 teammates Jerren Nixon and Raheem Taylor-Parkes are planning to attend Virginia this fall, while Auston Trusty is verbally committed to North Carolina and Michael Swift to Clemson.

Matthew Ralph

Matthew Ralph is the managing editor of Philadelphia Soccer Now. He's covered soccer at all levels for a decade in the Philadelphia region and has also written for TheCup.us, NPSL, PrepSoccer and other publications. He lives with his wife and two young children in Broomall, Pa., but grew up in South Jersey and is originally from Kansas.

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