HOUSTON BOLT ANNOUNCES FIRST FIVE SIGNINGS FOR MLIS PROFESSIONAL TEAM

The Houston Bolt are excited to officially announce the signing of the first five athletes for the 2022-23 MLIS Professional season: Lucio Martinez, Jordi Cobo, Hanif Mohammad, Jeminson Mejia, and Wyssam Zaban.

Lucio Martinez previously played with Houston Bolt during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons in the semi-professional Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL). “I love playing for them, it feels like a family to me, not just any soccer team. Love the coaching staff and the way they treat us and I couldn’t be any happier with the organization.” Lucio is looking forward to playing professionally in the MLIS and has big goals for the season: “My goals for Houston Bolt are for us to give it our all; show the fans that Houston Bolt is an amazing team, with a lot of talent, and to accomplish what we all are here for – winning the Championship title.”

Jordi Cobo previously played D1 soccer with Houston Baptist [now Christian] University. He is excited to enter the indoor arena, play professionally, and play in front of the Houston Bolt fan base: “The crowd can expect lots of goals, lots of wins and lots of hard-fought matches.” Jordi is also pumped to have the opportunity to follow in his Father’s footsteps: “My Dad is my favorite soccer player. He played professional soccer in Colombia and came to Houston to play pro for the Houston Hotshots in 1994.”

Hanif Mohammad played collegiate soccer for Hastings College in Nebraska and the University of St. Thomas here in Houston. He has most recently played with the Greenspoint Gunners in the NSL Premier division. He was not born in Houston but he considers it home: “My favorite thing about playing for Houston Bolt is being able to represent the city I live in and love and not having to be away from home.” Hanif is very excited to continue to grow as a professional player with Bolt this season: “My pregame routine is to watch soccer matches to help me learn more about the game. I believe there is always room for improvement. As a new team in this new league we are ready to work really hard to get our name out there.”

Jeminson Mejia played collegiate soccer with Huston Tillotson in Austin and has one pro season under his belt with Oxford City of Texas in the MASL in 2014. He most recently played with Houston Bolt during the 2021-22 season in the semi-professional Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL): “My favorite thing about playing for Bolt is when we play home games. I like the support we get on our home field and expect even more people to come out this season. We will try our best to defend our city and team and to bring a national championship home.” A fun fact about Jeminson: “My go-to pre-game routine is just listening to Eladio Carrión, his music gets me pumped up for the game.”

Wyssam Zaban most recently played with Houston Bolt during the 2020-21 and 2021-22 seasons in the semi-professional Premier Arena Soccer League (PASL). He’s looking forward to starting off his professional career with some of the same teammates: “My favorite thing about playing with Houston bolt would be the relationships I have with the coaching staff and players. We all get along very well.” Some of Wyssam’s inspiration comes from watching highlights of his favorite player: “My favorite player would definitely have to be Ronaldinho. Why? Because the things he did with the ball were just beautiful.”