ECAC Announces Division I Men's Soccer All-ECAC
DANBURY, Conn. – The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) has announced its 2017 Division I Men’s Soccer All-ECAC Team.
Mark Forrest from Lehigh University takes home Offensive Player of the Year, while University of Massachusetts Lowell’s Ivan Blaskic garnered Defensive Player of the Year. Davis Smith of the University of Massachusetts claimed the Rookie of the Year award and Tom Giovatto of St. Francis College Brooklyn received Coach of the Year.
Forrest had an impressive junior season for the Mountain Hawks. He led the Patriot League in goals and points and was fourth in assists. He ranks second in the nation for most points, third for most goals, sixth for most assists, fourth for most points per game and sixth for most goals per game. A three-time Patriot League Offensive Player of the Week, Forrest was also tabbed Patriot League Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Patriot League.
Blaskic has been a mainstay on the squad's back line, making all 16 starts and appearing in all of the season's minutes. He tallied a career-high four goals and added one assist for a career-best nine points which has him tied for the team lead in goals and second in game-winning goals. He was selected as America East Defender of the Year and earned a spot on the All-Conference First Team. A force in the classroom as well, Blaskic was named to the America East All-Conference Academic team as well as the CoSIDA Academic All-District Division I First Team as the sophomore boasts a 3.85 GPA in computer science.
Smith was awarded Atlantic 10 Rookie of the Year honor after posting a team-leading nine goals along with five assists for 23 points. The freshman forward also received a first-team all-conference nod while being named to the all-rookie team as he ranks fourth in the league in goals. Smith's assists ranked second on the team this season while he added six goals in league play.
Tom Giovatto closes out his eleventh year at the helm of the Terriers after claiming their second consecutive Northeast Conference regular season title. He recorded his 100
th career win this season against NEC rival Robert Morris and owns a remarkable record of 103-64-29; all of those wins have come along the Terrier sidelines. Coach Giovatto has built a dynasty in Brooklyn Heights as he's led the Terriers to three NEC championships over the past four years and has recorded double-figure win totals in five straight seasons. The Terriers went unbeaten in conference play for the second consecutive year and are a combined 12-0-2 against league rivals the last two seasons. The squad finished the season ranked second in the United Soccer Coaches Northeast region poll. Giovatto and his staff were tabbed NEC Coaching Staff of the Year.
ECAC Division I Men’s Soccer All-ECAC Selections
Offensive Player of the Year
Mark Forrest – Lehigh University, Jr., F
Defensive Player of the Year
Ivan Blaskic – University of Massachusetts Lowell, So., D
Rookie of the Year
Davis Smith – University of Massachusetts, Fr., F
Coach of the Year
Tom Giovatto– St. Francis College- Brooklyn
All-ECAC First Team
Mark Forrest – Lehigh University, Jr., F
Mario Mastrangelo – Saint Francis University, Jr., F
Mamadou Guirassy – New Jersey Institute of Technology, Sr., F
Rasmus Hansen – Long Island University- Brooklyn, Jr., M
Joe Swenson – University of Pennsylvania, Sr., M
Alex DeSantis – University of Massachusetts, Sr., M
Ivan Blaskic – University of Massachusetts Lowell, So., D
Aram Ouiligan– Colgate University, Sr., D
Matthew Lewis – Fordham University, Sr., D
Faouzi Taieb – St. Francis College-Brooklyn, So., D
Rashid Nuhu – Fordham University, Jr., GK
All-ECAC Honorable Mention
Allen Gavilanes – Marist College, Fr., F
Mac Steeves – Providence College, Fr., D
Jose Aguinaga – Rider University, Sr. M
Jakov Basic – University of Massachusetts Lowell, Jr., M
Sylvain Coco – Rider University, Fr., D
ABOUT THE ECAC
Established in 1938, the ECAC is the nation's largest Conference, ranging in location from Maine to Georgia, and westerly to Missouri. The ECAC hosts numerous championships in men's and women's sports across Divisions I, II and III, offering opportunities for thousands of student-athletes. For more information, visit www.ecacsports.com.
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