With each passing day, the USL League One regular season approaches and Búhos Nation become more eager to hear news of the next Union Omaha player signing. Yesterday, the club gifted its fans just that and this gift was well worth the wait.
Union Omaha announced the signing of forward Hugo Kametani. The 23 year-old from Kashima, Japan has made waves in the soccer community and those waves carried him to the United States. While in Tucson, Arizona, Kametani played for Pima Community College and scored the game-winning goal in extra time of the National Junior College Men’s Soccer Championship final. After helping the Aztecs lift the trophy, Kametani found himself to be the recipient of multiple honors and awards, including 2018 United Soccer Coaches Junior College Division I National College Player of the Year, First Team NJCAA All-American, and First Team United Soccer Coaches All-American, just to name a few. By the time the next collegiate soccer season began, Kametani had already made his way to Omaha, Nebraska, where he would suit up and represent the University of Nebraska at Omaha (UNO).
Kametani ended up playing his last two years of collegiate soccer with the Mavericks in Omaha and was bound and determined to never let his hype overshadow his potential. During his two seasons at UNO, Kametani played in 28 matches, scoring 11 goals, 3 game-winners, and one assist. In both seasons, his shot-on-goal percentage was at 50% or higher, while taking a total of 79 shots. His efforts resulted in many honors and awards, such as 2020 Summit League Newcomer of the Year, 2020 All-Summit First Team, 2021 Academic All-League, and multiple Offensive Player of the Week awards. Before the 2021 season, Kametani was placed on the watch list for the Hermann Trophy, which is awarded to the top men’s soccer player in the nation.
Union Omaha coach Jay Mims recognized his talents and complimented the coaching staff at UNO in the press release for Kametani’s signing. “It has been so great to follow Hugo’s development over the last year locally in Omaha,” said Mims. “Coach Warming and UNO have done such a great job with him and we are so thrilled to continue his progress and help him reach an even higher level. He will fit in so well with our current group.”
Kametani expressed excitement for the coming season in the press release, as well. “I’d like to thank Union Omaha for giving me such a great opportunity,” he said. “I’m so excited to start my professional career in Omaha. I can’t wait to play in front of the Union Omaha fans!”
If you think Hugo’s only connection to Union Omaha comes from playing in the same city, you may be surprised to learn of another connection: he played alongside Tyler David, a former Owl, last season at Des Moines Menace, the 2021 USL League Two Champions. Kametani played in six games, scored two goals, and even received some playing time in the USL League Two Championship.
And speaking of career stats, Who Gives A Hoot’s very own Ryan LeGrande sent me his current career stats. He’s played a total of 60 games, scoring 27 goals, and added an assist along the way. That comes out to one goal for every 2.22 games. If he can continue on with that level of production in League One, he’ll be at 13.5 goals across 30 regular season games, matching almost perfectly with 2021 Union Omaha scoring leaders Greg Hurst (14 goals) and Evan Conway (13 goals).
Alongside his experiences, Kametani brings the mentality of a champion. He’s been on that stage multiple times in his career, knows how to make it happen, and can foster that same mentality in the locker room of the current USL League One champions. As far as what he brings to the club, this short clip from his highlight video should tell you plenty about him as a player:
The video shows that he has plenty of weapons in his arsenal: accurate heading, runs off the ball, ability to find space, soft touches under pressure, pulling defenders away and creating space for teammates, dropping back into a defensive role, the ability to switch the field accurately, and holding the ball for an offensive buildup. He’s a great addition to Union Omaha and will only see his stock continue to rise during his time with the club. It’s no wonder why Union Omaha fans are excited to see him join the Owls.
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