SFU's Francis De Vries wins NEC Defensive Player of the Year, SFU's Michael Casper wins Coach of the Year, CCSU's Filosmar Cordiero wins NEC Rookie of the Year
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Somerset, NJ -- The Northeast Conference (NEC) announced its 2014 men’s soccer All-Conference teams and individual award winners on Thursday, with NEC regular season champion Saint Francis University taking home two of the four major awards. Robert Morris’ Neco Brett (Kingston, Jamaica/Excelsior) became the seventh player in NEC men’s soccer history to earn back-to-back NEC Player of the Year honors. Saint Francis U’s Francis De Vries (Christchurch, New Zealand/Cashmere) was voted NEC Defensive Player of the Year and Central Connecticut’s Filosmar Cordiero (Stamford, CT/Westhill) was named the NEC Rookie of the Year.
Saint Francis U’s Michael Casper was recognized by his peers as the NEC Coach of the Year. In his sixth season, Casper guided the Red Flash to a 6-1 league mark and first NEC regular season title in program history. SFU’s 12 overall wins on the year are a new school single-season record. On Friday, the Red Flash return to the postseason seeking their first-ever NEC Tournament championship. Bill Furjanic (1993) and B.J. Craig (2004) were previous NEC Coach of the Year winners for SFU.
Brett, a junior forward, became the third Robert Morris player to win NEC Player of the Year in program history and the first Colonial to win the award in back-to-back seasons. He leads the nation in total goals with 15 and total points with 33. The dynamic forward also ranks second nationally in goals per game with 0.83 and points per game with 1.83. Brett had a career game on October 5, scoring all four Colonial goals in a 4-0 win over George Washington. RMU’s other NEC Player of the Year honorees were Troy Fabiano (1993) and Rhian Dodds (2002).
De Vries became the first Red Flash player in program history to be named NEC Defensive Player of the Year. The sophomore led a Red Flash defense that allowed less than one goal per game during the regular season and just five tallies on NEC play. Likewise, SFU turned in nine clean sheets this season, including three against league opposition. A first team All-NEC honoree as a freshman in 2013, De Vries finished the regular season with five goals and ten points.
Cordiero is the fifth Blue Devil to be named NEC Rookie of the Year and second in as many years. The freshman finished the season with two goals and three assists good for seven points. Cordiero was also named the U-ADE NEC Men’s Soccer Rookie of the Week back on October 20th. Previous NEC Rookie of the Year honorees for CCSU were Jorden Holder (2002), Alex Harrison (2003), Yan Klukowski (2005) and Conor Qualter (2013).
The NEC first team All-Conference was comprised of 11 total players from six different teams.
Saint Francis U had four players named to the All-NEC first team. Senior forward Ryan Byers (Scottdale, PA/Southmoreland) makes his first appearance on the NEC All-conference first team. Byers leads Saint Francis U with seven goals and 17 total points. The three-time U-ADE/NEC Men’s Soccer Player of the Week also ranks third in the league in total points and fourth in points per game with 0.94 per contest. Pablo Medina (Monterrey, Mexico/IMG Academies) also makes his first All-NEC appearance as a senior. The midfielder leads all NEC players by a wide margin with 11 assists and also ranks second in the nation in that same category. Francis De Vries (Christchurch, New Zealand/Cashmere) returns to the All-NEC first team for the second consecutive season. The sophomore is currently third on the Red Flash in goals with five and total points with 10. Senior defender Mitch Kavlick (Erie, PA/Erie McDowell) makes his second appearance on an all-NEC squad and his first on the All-NEC first team. Kavlick is part of a Saint Francis U back line that yielded just 17 goals during the regular season. He has tallied one goal and one assist.
Joining Neco Brett (Kingston, Jamaica/Excelsior) on the All-NEC first team is Robert Morris teammate Devon “Speedy” Williams (Kingston, Jamaica/Excelsior). The senior midfielder was an All-NEC second teamer last season. Williams ranked second on the Colonials with four goals, six assists and 14 total points. He is fifth in the NEC in assists per game and sixth in points per game.
Bryant lands a first team representative in junior midfielder Brett Larocque (Ottawa, Ontario/Ecole Jean Vanier). Larocque leads the Bulldogs with six goals, four assists and 16 total points. He ranks in the NEC top-10 in all three categories, including third in points per game.
LIU Brooklyn senior forward Brice Merwine (Carlisle, PA/Carlisle) makes his first appearance on an all-NEC squad. The senior leads the Blackbirds with 24 points and ranks fifth in the nation with 12 goals. Merwine is also second in the NEC in both goals (0.75) and points (1.50) per outing.
Defending NEC champion St. Francis Brooklyn makes the list with two players on the all-NEC first team. Senior defender Ricky Milano (Caracas, Venezuela/Colegio “Los Arcos”) helped the Terriers rank eleventh in the country in goals against average allowing just 0.68 goals against per game. Terrier teammate Jack Binks (Darlington, England/Hurworth Comprehensive), a junior, leads the league in shutouts with nine and also had a six-match clean sheet streak during the regular season. He also leads the NEC with a 0.68 goals against average.
Central Connecticut senior midfielder Keir Hannity (Sheffield, England/Lancaster University) led the Blue Devils with five goals and 12 assists on the year. He currently stands sixth on the circuit in goals per game and eighth in points per game.
Bryant lands four players on the All-NEC second team. Along with first teamer Brett Larocque, it marks the first time the Bulldogs have had any players claim All-Conference honors. Senior forward Connor Norat (Wilmington, DE/Salesianum) ranks second on the team with four goals and ten points. Norat was also named as the U-ADE/NEC Men’s Soccer Co-Player of the Week in the final week of the regular season. Senior defenders Tony Flaim (Fort Lee, NJ/Bergen Catholic) and Shane Murphy (Kennett Square, PA/Unionville) helped the Bulldog defense rank third in the league with a 1.16 goals against average and fourth in the conference with four shutouts. Junior keeper Chris Knaub (Yarmouth, ME/Yarmouth) currently ranks 16th in the country with 5.07 saves per game and had three shutouts in the regular season.
St. Francis Brooklyn also claimed three spots on the all-NEC second team. John Makaya (Montpellier, France/University of Montpellier (France)), a junior forward, ranks third in the league with eight goals and third in the league with 17 points heading into the postseason. The lone freshman to earn All-Conference honors, Vincent Bezecourt (Aire sur I’Adour, France/Lycee Fernand Daguin) is currently tied for second in the league in assists with six and averages 0.33 assists per game from his midfield spot. Andy Cormack (Plymouth, England/Hele’s School) makes his second appearance on the all-NEC second team. The senior midfielder finished the regular season with two goals and one assist.
LIU Brooklyn junior defender Tanner Sica (Toms River, NJ/Toms River North) returns as an all-NEC honoree for the second time in his collegiate career. Sica is currently tied for second in the league with six assists and averages 0.38 assists per game.
Saint Francis U junior midfielder Conner Rezende (Davie, FL/University School at Nova Southeastern) is one of five Red Flash all-stars. He ranks fifth on the team with six points on one goal and four assists.
CCSU junior forward Zach Zurita (Stratford, CT/Monmouth) makes it back-to-back second team All-NEC honors. Zurita ranked second on the Blue Devils with three goals and finished the season with six points.
Fairleigh Dickinson junior midfielders Christian Dietrich (Berlin, Germany/Flatow-Oberschule) rounds out the All-NEC second team squad. He led Knights with four goals and nine points this season.
About The Northeast Conference
Now in its 34th year, the Northeast Conference is an NCAA Division I collegiate athletic association consisting of 10 institutions of higher learning located throughout six states. Media coverage of the NEC extends to four of the largest markets in the United States - New York (#1), Pittsburgh (#23), Baltimore (#27), and Hartford/New Haven (#30). Founded in 1981 as the basketball-only ECAC Metro Conference, the NEC has grown to sponsor 22 championship sports for men and women and now enjoys automatic access to 14 different NCAA Championships. NEC member institutions include Bryant, Central Connecticut, Fairleigh Dickinson, LIU Brooklyn, Mount St. Mary’s, Robert Morris, Sacred Heart, St. Francis Brooklyn, Saint Francis U and Wagner. For more information on the NEC, visit the league’s official website (www.northeastconference.org) and digital network (www.necfrontrow.com), or follow the league on Twitter, Facebook, YouTube, Instagram and Google+, all @NECsports.