NEW FLAME BURNING — Lee University soccer coach Henry Moyo made a recent trip to Europe where he was able to sign North Carolina native Gregory Smith Jr. Smith currently lives in Germany where his father is a pastor and his mother teaches at a military base. Present at the signing were, seated from left, sister Heather, brother Jonathan, Gregory Jr., father Greg Smith Sr. and mother Dana Smith. Also present were, standing FC Gerolzhofen Coach Ansgar Willacker, U-19 Coach Rene Haentzschel, Coach Moyo, U-19 assistant Coach Thomas Barget. Photo provided by Lee University.
Lee men's soccer coach Henry Moyo recently returned from Germany where he signed a young winger/forward, Gregory Smith Jr., for the upcoming season.
Smith, who is originally from North Carolina, is currently in Germany where his mother is teaching at a military base and his father is a church pastor. He has played soccer with German clubs FC Gerolzhofen and FC Schweinfurt. These teams play just 4-5 levels below the top flight, according to coach Moyo. He is a gifted winger/forward with pace and skill.
“I was able to watch him play his final season game and he was a starter on the team,” said Moyo. “ He is a gifted player with pace and skill. Greg might be small physically, but he puts up a lot of mileage during the game. His strengths lie in his ability to read the game, be at the right place to finish and also his endurance. He runs track and field for his high school as well.”
May added, “What really impressed me with him was his desire to learn, to improve. This was echoed by both his U-17 and U-19 coaches in Germany. They spoke highly of him as a person and player. I know that the college game will be totally different and will take some adjusting.”
Smith says that he is not easily intimidated by bigger players, having played against many of those types of individuals in Germany.
“We are very delighted to have Gregory join the Flames family and we look forward to his contributions” said Moyo.“He is a young player with a big heart and has been coached well. He is bringing plenty of skills to our program.”
Gregory will be joining his brother, Jonathan Smith, who is a student here at Lee.
