Jefferson Hagen
MacEwan Athletics
EDMONTON – After initial recruiting conversations a year ago planted the seed, athletic striker Alain Sitchet has decided to join the Griffins men's soccer team for the 2024-25 Canada West season.
The graduate of Spruce Grove's Memorial Composite initially went south for his first season of post-secondary soccer, playing for NCAA Div. III Elms College in Chicopee, Mass. In 2023.
That he decided to transfer and take head coach Adam Loga up on his offer to join the Griffins that was initially extended in 2023, is a huge boost to the team's forward corps.
"He'll bring that athleticism, size and pace that's needed more often than not in Canada West," Loga said of the 6-foot-1 product of Raleigh, N.C., who lived in the Edmonton area for high school. "Especially as we move deeper into the fall, fields may not play as cleanly, the weather's not as pristine as we'd maybe like. So, it can turn into a game for athletes, rather than footie players. Not saying he can't do both, but that size, pace and athleticism definitely serves a massive purpose in our conference."
After moving to Canada for high school, Sitchet played locally for Juventus and also reached the 2022-23 Tier 1 U19 provincial final with Southwest United.
At the 2022 FTF Summer Edmonton Showcase Combine, Sitchet received a match MVP and All Team Combine Honourable Mention. He also excelled at the Buckeyes Summer Camp in 2022.
Then last season, Sitchet started six times and played in 13 games for Elms College as a freshman, recording nine shots. That experience will be invaluable in helping him adjust quickly to the rigours of Canada West.
"The biggest jump here and it's not a knock to our lads locally, but I think the demand and level of commitment that's necessary at this level is sometimes missed on the step from youth into college or pro," Loga explained. "In the U.S., from personal experience – seeing it, living it, playing it – it doesn't matter if you're D1 or DIII, it's every day. The standard is there, the wages are there. By him coming up north again, he knows it's a seven-day-a-week commitment. That's the expectation.
"Sometimes with younger players, you need to break it in a little bit. It can go 0-60 super fast for them, but he's already had that experience, so that's huge and will definitely expedite his process into our group, for sure."
