Already loaded with veterans going into the 2009 season, the University of Evansville men's soccer team has added a player with NCAA Tournament experience. Aaron Henkle, a former teammate of UE soccer team captain Robby Lynch at Carmel (Ind.) High School, has transferred to UE from the University of Akron. He will be eligible for the 2009 season. Henkle was a starting defender in all four post-season contests last fall for the Zips, who reached the NCAA Division I Sweet 16 and finished with a 17-2-4 record. Akron was ranked as high as number two nationally in 2008.

“Aaron is an excellent athlete who has the ability to contribute on both sides of the ball, and in a number of different roles," said UE Head Coach Mike Jacobs. "We know that he could be a valuable piece of the puzzle in 2009. We have tried to build our program around players who expect to win whenever they play, and Aaron shares this expectation level.”

As a redshirt freshman in 2008, Henkle was a member of an Akron defensive unit that led the nation in goals-against average at 0.45 per game. He was the career leader in goals, assists and total points for the six-time state champion Carmel Cosmos, who were ranked as high as second nationally. Henkle was also the IHSAA Tournament MVP in leading Carmel High School to the 2006 state title. He was one of Carmel's top two scorers in each of his four seasons on the team, a two-time all-state selection, and set the school record with 84 consecutive games played.

Henkle joins an Evansville program that has produced three consecutive winning seasons under Jacobs, who goes into his fourth year as head coach at UE with nine returning starters and eight other letterwinners.