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In their first major signing ahead of the 2016 USL Premier Development League season, the Burlingame Dragons FC have signed former San Jose Earthquakes Academy goalkeeper JT Marcinkowski. The Dragons, the U-23 affiliate of the Earthquakes, are expected to sign many additional players with ties to Academy in the weeks ahead.
Marcinkowski just completed his freshman year at Georgetown, where he was named the Big East Freshman of the Year and selected to the all-conference's First Team. Earlier this month, the Alamo, CA native trained with the U-20 U.S. men's national team in Miami, where he was joined by fellow Quakes Academy alum and current Stanford freshman Amir Bashti.
"J.T. is a class act and a great representation of what the Earthquakes Academy and BDFC is all about," said Dragons head coach Eric Bucchere in a club statement. "After an impressive first season at Georgetown, I'm looking forward to seeing his continued growth this summer."
Because the Dragons are an amateur team, Marcinkowski is not signing a professional contract, so his college eligibility will stay intact. The PDL side has been a place for local college players and other players of potential interest to the Earthquakes to get in some quality competition in the summer months. The NCAA season starts up again in the fall.
In his first season at Georgetown, the 18-year-old Marconkowski posted a 0.69 goals against average and 63 saves, earning a 16-2-3 record with nine shutouts in 21 appearances. His play between the posts was instrumental in leading the Hoyas to the NCAA playoffs, but Georgetown was eliminated via a penalty shoot-out by Boston College in the Round of 16.
Marcinkowski returns to the Bay Area to a join a Burlingame side that completed a successful inaugural season in 2015, capturing the PDL's Southwest Division Championship. The Dragons play all of the home games at Burlingame High School, and their preseason schedule begins February 27 with a road game at the Earthquakes USL affiliate Sacramento Republic FC.