Langley/Montreal – Trinity Western University men’s soccer alum Joel Waterman (Aldergrove, B.C.) has joined the Montreal Impact, becoming the first Spartan to sign a contract with a Major League Soccer club.
Waterman, who had played throughout 2019 with Cavalry FC, from the Canadian Premier League, signed a two-year contract with the club, with options for 2022 and 2023.
Waterman, 23, played five years with TWU, helping elevate the Spartans program back into being perennial contenders within Canada West and U SPORTS. The Spartans captured Canada West medals in each of his final three years, winning bronze in 2016 before back-to-back silver medals in 2017 and 2018. Waterman capped his university career by helping lead TWU back to the U SPORTS championship tournament, in 2018, for the first time in nine years. The Spartans finished fourth in the championship tournament, which saw TWU upset top-seeded York University in the quarter-finals.
In his time with TWU, Waterman registered nine goals and five assists in 57 career games, including 48 starts.
“This is massive,” said Spartan men’s soccer coach Mike Shearon. “This is a huge day for our program and for Canada West and a great opportunity for U SPORTS. I couldn’t be more thrilled for Joel and what’s next. This is why players are wanting to play in the Canadian Premier League. You look at Canada West and you look at how well Cavalry did this year and how Canada West was represented, you can see there are players, when given the chance, they can play at the next level.”
Waterman also played three seasons in the USL Premier Development League, suiting up with the Kitsap Pumas in 2016, TSS FC Rovers in 2017 and the Calgary Foothills in 2018, with whom he won the league playoff championship. He also appeared in two Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup games in 2016.
