DEKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois University men's soccer head coach Ryan Swan announced the addition of three signees, Jose Gomez (Roatan, Honduras/Clarke University), Martin Montoya (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central) and Grant Paskus (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North), to join the Huskie men's soccer program for the 2024 season. 

Gomez comes to NIU following two seasons at Clarke University in Dubuque, Iowa. This fall, Gomez earned Second Team All-Heart of America Conference honors as he finished the year as Clarke's second-leading scorer with nine points, tallying two goals and five assists. As a freshman at Clarke in 2022, Gomez was a third team all-league honoree as he recorded one goal and five assists. 

"Jose brings college experience and great composure and vision on the ball," said Swan. "He really impressed our staff every time we watched him as he controlled the tempo of the game and proved to be a goalscoring threat from midfield. We are excited to get Jose to campus in January."

Montoya played three seasons at Hinsdale Central High School and is a two-time First Team All-West Suburban Conference honoree. As a senior this fall, Montoya scored 12 goals with 10 assists to earn All-Sectional honors from the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association (IHSSCA). In three seasons at Hinsdale Central, Montoya recorded 22 goals and 22 assists, he also plays club soccer with Eclipse Select SC. 

"Martin is an excellent one-v-one attacking player," said Swan. "He is very comfortable receiving the ball under pressure and has a number of tools for beating defenders. I look forward to working with Martin throughout his college career."

Paskus comes to NIU from the Indy Eleven Pro Academy. This fall, Paskus has helped their U20 team to an undefeated regular season, qualifying for the United Soccer League U20 Academy Playoffs. A midfielder, Paskus helped the Indy Eleven Academy reach the MLS Next Playoffs in 2021 and 2022 and won the USL Academy Cup with the U20 team in the spring of 2023. 

"Grant is a tough and hardworking central midfielder," said Swan. "He has all of the physical attributes to compete at the collegiate level immediately. I believe he has the mentality and technical skillset to have an outstanding career at NIU."

The Huskies recently completed the 2023 season, their first in the Missouri Valley Conference, by reaching the conference tournament semifinals.