DEKALB, Ill. – Northern Illinois University men's soccer head coach Ryan Swan announced the addition of five student-athletes to the Huskie men's soccer program. Alex Curtis (St. Charles, Ill./St. Charles North), Wiktor Kwiatkowski (Brussels, Belgium/Arizona Western), Henry Mullen (Kansas City, Mo./ Rockhurst), Jaephil Seo (Seoul, South Korea/ Bryan College) and Josh Squires (Christchurch, England/Highcliffe School) will join the Huskies for the 2024 season. 

Curtis played four seasons in goal at St. Charles North High School, setting a new school record for career shutouts. A two-year captain, Curtis earned a pair of all-conference honors while also being named to the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association All-State Team twice. He recorded 120 saves in 19 matches with four shutouts as a senior in 2023 after tallying a 0.39 goals against average with 93 saves and 11 shutouts in 19 games as a junior in 2022. 

"Alex is very dynamic and has all the tools necessary to be an outstanding collegiate goalkeeper," said Swan. "He impressed us every time we saw him play and I am confident he will go on to have a great collegiate career at NIU."

A center back, Kwiatkowski helped Arizona Western to a 17-1-3 overall record in 2023 as it reached the semifinals of the NJCAA Division I National Tournament. Kwiatkowski appeared in 15 matches, making 13 starts, and scored one goal. He began his collegiate career at Union College (Ky.) in 2022, where he played in 18 matches, including 16 starts, scoring a pair of goals with two assists. 

"I saw Wiktor play for Arizona Western this year and was impressed with his leadership, tough tackling and range of passing," said Swan. "He helped lead Arizona Western to an outstanding season and I expect him help strengthen our defensive play."

Mullen played three seasons at Rockhurst High School, helping the Hawklets to a trio of Missouri Class 4 State Championships. As a senior in 2023, Mullen earned first team all-state honors and was named the Missouri Class 4 Defensive Player of the Year when helping Rockhurst to a 24-0-0 record. The Hawklets earned the No. 1 National Ranking from the United Soccer Coaches for the 2023 fall season. 

"Henry has great speed and athleticism and is coming off a great high school season with Rockhurst High School in Kansas City," said Swan. "Our staff was very impressed with his maturity both on and off the field and believe he has the potential to develop into a tremendous student-athlete for us here at NIU."

Seo comes to NIU following two seasons at Bryan College (Tenn.). In 2023, he started 18 matches, scoring six goals with four assists. As a freshman in 2022, Seo played in 18 games, making 16 starts, while tallying two goals and two assists. 

"Jaephil joins us from Bryan College and will offer us a different attacking option," said Swan. "Jaephil is comfortable playing centrally or wide and is very good in one-v-one situations. He also has the appetite to press high up the field. His college experience and technical ability will be a great addition to our team."

Squires is a member of the Southampton FC youth system, currently playing with the Southampton Under-21 team in Premier League 2. Squires helped the Saints win the Premier League 2 championship in 2022-23 and helped the Southampton U18 Team win the U18 Premier League South title in 2021-22. He also earned a pair of caps for the Scotland Under-18 National Team in 2023. 

"Josh is a very technical and composed center midfielder," said Swan. "He has a great range of passes and is very comfortable with both his defensive and attacking responsibilities. I expect Josh to come in and challenge for playing time immediately."

The quintet brings NIU's total number of signees for the fall of 2024 to nine as they join previously announced signees: Jose Gomez (Roatan, Honduras/Clarke University), Martin Montoya (Hinsdale, Ill./Hinsdale Central), William Mugisha (Salt Lake City, Utah/Utah State Eastern) and Grant Paskus (Indianapolis, Ind./Lawrence North).