**Athlete Interviews are posted every Thursday for recruiting advice, what to look for, and more.  

The Oregon Institute of Technology (Oregon Tech) men's soccer team is having the best season it's seen in years. They are currently ranked 1st in the Cascade Collegiate Conference, and have the best defense in the nation for NAIA. With a 10-1 record, the team has high hopes for the remainder of the season. This last weekend, the Oregon Tech men's team beat the reigning conference champs: Corban University.

2aDays met with three members of the team to discuss their climb to the top, what it's like to be a team leader, their team goals, and how they've encountered and dealt with burnout along the way.

Related school ratings: Oregon Institute of Technology, Corban University

Noah Pham is a winger on the Oregon Tech men's soccer team. Noah is from Irvine, CA and is graduating in Fall 2021 with a Biology-Health Science Degree and a Chemistry minor. 

Captain Jake Mitchell plays center-mid and is one of the Oregon Tech team captains. He will be graduating in Spring 2022 with a Mechanical Engineering degree and an Applied Mathematics minor. Jake is from Temecula, CA. He was recently named Cascade Collegiate Conference offensive player of the week.

Related school ratings: Cascade Collegiate Conference

Reilly Combs is a senior on the Oregon Tech soccer team and is from Oregon City, Oregon. He plays center-back and was recently named conference defensive player of the week. He is a team captain alongside Jake Mitchell this year.

* Originally published on October 28, 2021, by Sydney DeNardo