MISAEL GONZALEZ VOTED OEC CHARACTER CHAMPION

Sophomore FC soccer standout Misael Gonzalez was selected as the 2024 Orange Empire Conference Character Champion award as voted by the conference athletic directors and commissioner.

Out of Fullerton High School, sophomore standout Misael Gonzalez has been nothing short of amazing for the FC men's soccer program. He is the only player in the program's history to earn Orange Empire Conference MVP honors, let alone do it in back-to-back seasons (2022 and 2023).

Last season, Gonzalez scored 27 total goals, which was the second most in the state. He was also the team's co-leader in assists with 7. Serving as the captain on the FC men's soccer team the last two seasons, Gonzalez helped lead the Hornets to back-to-back Orange Empire Conference titles while amassing 40 goals and 13 assists with a team overall record of 33-8-6. What makes this more impressive is that Misael had all this success on the field while working hard in the classroom earning a 3.94 GPA.

All the hard work on the field and in the classroom has paid dividends for Misael, who signed a full-ride scholarship to UCI.

"Misael has been a one of the true great student-athletes to join the Hornet family. He has led by example with his hard work and determination in the classroom, locker room, and field ever since he joined the program. I am very proud of his accomplishments and feel very fortunate to have coached a man of his character", Fullerton College Men's Soccer Coach Greg Aviles.

Also earning the female OEC Character Champion Award is Cypress College soccer player Chloe Imperiali. 

The Orange Empire Conference is widely recognized as the top community college athletic conference in the country. The rosters in all sports are filled with student athletes from Orange County high schools – the biggest reason it is successful in competition, the classroom, and in our community. Each year, the OEC names one male and female student athlete from each member college to the Character Champion Team, while recognizing overall winners of the Character Champion Award. The award is given to the student athlete who displays the values of sportsmanship, respect, caring, fairness, civility, honesty, integrity, and responsibility shown through specific action. These student athletes routinely put the team and teammates before oneself while acting as a positive role model.