Harvard men’s soccer welcomes seven-member Class of 2027 featuring global talent

CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – Harvard University men’s soccer will welcome seven first-years to the program for the start of the 2023 season as part of the Class of 2027, Josh Shapiro, The Virginia B. and James O. Welch, Jr. ’52 Head Coach for Harvard Men’s Soccer, announced.

“Our staff, specifically Coach Ciuffetelli and Harkin put in a tremendous amount of effort to identify and bring these student-athletes into the program, and we are excited to mesh their exciting ability into our talented returning group,” Shapiro said.

The class spans the globe with three international student-athletes and four domestic players, including the countries of Norway, Japan, and Cyprus and the U.S. states of Massachusetts (two), California, and Pennsylvania. The group provides balance across the pitch with three attackers, two midfielders, one defender, and one goalkeeper.

“The seven student athletes are going to provide us with talented depth across our team and we expect them to push players in many positions for playing time,” Shapiro said. “We see goals in the group of attackers, two-way qualities in the midfielders, and stout defending in the back line players. We are so excited to get to work with this group on campus in August!”

Harvard’s Class of 2027 includes: midfielder Erik Dalaker (Rennesøy, Norway), forward Yuta Hata (Tokyo, Japan), midfielder Ben Kelly (Cambridge, Mass.), defender Riccardo Rollo (Boston, Mass.), forward Andreas Savva (Nicosia, Cyprus), forward Dylan Tellado (Mountain View, Calif.), and goalkeeper Nick Willen (Worcester, Pa.).

The group joins a Harvard side that closed the 2022 season unbeaten in its last eight games (5-0-3) and undefeated in its last six Ivy League contests (3-0-3). The Crimson claimed third place in the Ivy League standings with 12 points, marking its highest finish in the conference table since 2015. Harvard concluded the season with a 7-1-1 record at home.

Erik Dalaker
Midfielder | 5-foot-11 | 170 lbs. | Rennesøy, Norway | St. Svithun Videregående Skole

Debuted for Viking FK’s first team in 2022 … Earned 2022 Academy Player of the Year for Viking … Selected as a Top-20 Player of the League in 2022 … Gained Player of the Year for Viking U16 in 2019 … Captained Viking U19 in 2022 … Competed on the club level for Madla IL (2023), Viking FK (2015-22), and Mastra FK (2009-14) … Helped lead team to third place in national league in 2021 … Won national league with team in 2019 … Placed second in the national cup in 2019; earned MVP in the semifinals … Graduated as class valedictorian … Enjoys learning languages, hiking, skiing, and climbing … Son of Turi Olene Dalaker and Tom Galta.

Yuta Hata
Forward | 6-foot-0 | 160 lbs. | Tokyo, Japan | The American School in Japan

Earned All-Tokyo at the U14, U15, and U16 levels … Competed in an inter-prefectural national tournament in 2021, representing Tokyo … Led the U14 J League Metropolitan C with 15 goals in 20 games … Led team with 18 goals in 20 games in U15 Tokyo League Division 1 … Competed on the club level for Mitsubishi Yowa Soccer Club … Earned four varsity letters for ASIJ … National Honor Society member … Won the Outstanding Award in National High School Sports Data Analytics Competition … Enjoys Tetris and golf … Son of Mitsuhiro Hata and Eunyoung Kim.

Ben Kelly
Midfielder | 6-foot-2 | 175 lbs. | Cambridge, Mass. | The Roxbury Latin School

Earned All-State, All-NEPSAC, and All-ISL First Team honors in 2021 … Participated in U.S. Youth National Team Northeast Regional Camps in 2016 and 2017 … Captained Roxbury Latin in 2021 … Selected for the ECNL Northeast Regional Team in 2020 … Played on the club level for Boston Bolts (2017-23) and NEFC (2011-17); the Bolts ranked sixth in the nation per Top Drawer Soccer in 2022-23 … Represented the Pro Project in games against top Portuguese Academies, including Benfica, Braga, Estoril, Casa Pia, Bellenenses, and Oeiras in 2022 … Also competed in track & field and basketball … Speaks French … Plays the cello … Enjoys chess, golf, basketball, and football … Son of Sean Kelly and Cheryl Chen; both parents are professors of philosophy at Harvard; Sean competed in swimming at Brown … One grandfather played baseball and football at Brown while the other played lacrosse at MIT.

Riccardo Rollo
Defender | 5-foot-10 | 160 lbs. | Boston, Mass. | Boston Latin School

Competed on the club level for FC Boston Bolts MLS Next from the U14 to U19 levels … Helped team compete for MLS Next U17 Cup … Won the Harvard Book Award in 2022 … Took second place at the FIRST Robotics World Championship in 2022 … National Honor Society student … Interested in start-ups, robotics, and fishing …Brother of Allegra ’21, Federico ’23, and Ludovico ’25; Ludovico is a member of the Harvard men’s soccer team … Son of Marta Bergamaschi and Alessandro Rollo.

Andreas Savva
Forward | 5-foot-10 | 160 lbs. | Nicosia, Cyprus | The Grammar School, Nicosia

Played for the Cyprus National Team from the U14 to U21 levels … Selected as the Best Teenage Soccer Player of 2022 per the Cyprus Olympic Committee … Was the top scorer for the Cyprus National Team at the U14 to U19 levels … Earned a spot in the Best 11 of 2022 in the Cyprus U19 League … Gained Final MVP and top scorer honors at the Nicosia International Soccer Tournament … Competed on the club level for Omonoia Nicosia as a winger … Helped team win the Cyprus First Division championship in 2021 and the Cypurs Cup in 2022 … Won the Cyprus U19 League title in 2022, scoring 19 goals in 16 games … Enjoys music, video games, and travel … Son of Nadia Charalambous and Nicos Savva.

Dylan Tellado
Forward | 6-foot-1 | 160 lbs. | Mountain View, Calif. | Mountain View

Ranked as the top goal scorer in the U19 Boys MLS Next Northwest Division in 2022-23 … Earned a U.S. Youth National Team call-up in 2020 … Stood as the top goal scorer in California and ranked third in goals in the nation for the U.S. Development Academy in 2019 … Helped team earn the top seed in Generation Adidas Cup qualifying in 2022 and a No. 2 national ranking in 2022 … Competed on the club level for San Jose Earthquakes Academy (2017-22) and De Anza Force Soccer Club (2022-23) … Earned the Presidential Volunteer Service Award … An AP Scholar with Distinction … Co-founded two 501(c)(3) non-profit organizations … Co-founded school’s STEM Research Club … Son of Jose Tellado and Louise Hoo.

Nick Willen
Goalkeeper | 5-foot-9 | 170 lbs. | Worcester, Pa. | Methacton

Helped team reach the MLS Next Cup U16 Semifinals in 2021 and the MLS Next Cup U17 Quarterfinals in 2022 … Played on the club level for FC Delco in MLS Next … Also competed in track and field … National Merit Commended student … Class Treasurer … Enjoys Gaelic Football … Son of J. Douglas Willen and Kelly Conway; both graduated from Princeton in 1986 with J. Douglas competing in track & field … Uncle Bob Willen played goalkeeper at Virginia, earning All-America honors … Brother Zach Willen is a member of the Columbia track & field Class of 2027.