August 16th, 2018 (Irvine, Calif.) - Orange County SC is thrilled to announce the signing of 17-year-old Rafael Espinoza to the club’s first ever academy contract.



“Rafael is a very talented young player from Orange County that has a great future ahead of him. As our first-ever USL Academy player signee, he will be in a professional environment that will maximize his development and allow him to learn on a daily basis from top professional coaches and players”, said General Manager & EVP Oliver Wyss.



Espinoza joins the club having spent his youth career with local powerhouse club Slammers FC. The forward will spend the remainder of the 2018 season with Orange County SC before joining the University of California, Irvine in the new year to play college soccer and continue his education.



Head Coach Braeden Cloutier is excited to begin working with Espinoza, “I’ve known about him for several years and know what a talented young player he is. This is going to be a great experience for him to work in a competitive professional environment and see if he truly has what it takes to become a professional soccer player.”