Anderson Headlines 2021 Men's Soccer All-GNAC Honors
WINTHROP, Mass. – Senior forward DeAnte Anderson (Bloomfield, Conn.) of the University of Saint Joseph (USJ) men's soccer team headlined a flock of four Blue Jays named to the All-Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Teams, it was announced last week by the league's front office. Junior midfielder Michael Torres (Hartford, Conn.), sophomore forward Dane Stephens (Jamaica), and junior defender Elijah Rodriguez (Southington, Conn.) also made All-GNAC, as the conference unveiled its year-end awards, which are voted on by the league's head coaches. Stephens also made the All-Rookie Team, while Torres added the All-Sportsmanship Team to his accolades.
The Blue Jays finished with a 12-5-1 overall record, having won a dozen games in back-to-back seasons. Saint Joseph has qualified for the postseason in all three of its full seasons as a program, while also making consecutive semifinal appearances. Anderson set several team records this season for the Blue Jays, including goals in a game (five) and in a season (21). He also scored 47 points, another record for the senior from Bloomfield, Conn. Stephens also was one of the finest passers in the conference, finishing second in the league in assists with 10.
COACH QUOTE [Paul Wright] "It's always a compliment when other coaches recognize individuals for their achievements, even though it is a team sport. I'm sure our guys would be the first to tell you their success is a direct result of the success of those around them. We talked a lot about taking that extra step in our team meetings to get past a Saint Joe's Maine or a Norwich. We will be putting the work in this offseason, and hopefully we can add a few pieces where we think can help us get over those last couple of hurdles. As we do that, we understand that there are 12 other teams trying to do the same thing. All we can do though is try to get better, and add those pieces to get us to where we want to be for next season."
For the complete list of all-conference honorees, major award winners, and all-sportsmanship selections, please see below.
FIRST TEAM
F – JP Rioux, Johnson & Wales (RI)
F – Joseph Thongsythavong, Norwich
F – DeAnte Anderson, St. Joseph (Conn.)
M – Nick Gutekunst, Johnson & Wales (RI)
M – Mamadi Jiana, Norwich
M – Amerle Nemeye, Norwich
M – Rion Dos Santos, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
B – Cullen Swett, Norwich
B – Nolan Sooy, Johnson & Wales (RI)
B – Colin Grant, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
GK – David Walbridge, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
SECOND TEAM
F – Alec Erskine, Emmanuel (Mass.)
F – Kuma Onyejose, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
F – Austin Ward, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
M – Kevin Reilly, Johnson & Wales (RI)
M – Michael Torres, St. Joseph (Conn.)
M – Kyle Cocciardi, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
M – Jackson Fotter, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
B – Ethan Skinner, Emmanuel (Mass.)
B – Chuckie Tenbusch, Johnson & Wales (RI)
B – Diego Roman, Regis (Mass.)
GK – Robert Wagenseller, Norwich
THIRD TEAM
F – Abdoul Aremu, Albertus Magnus
F – Andree Hernandez, Norwich
F – Dane Stephens, St. Joseph (Conn.)
M – Kelvin Cortez, Albertus Magnus
M – Rubelsi Moran, Anna Maria
M – Kam Jorgenson, Norwich
M – Dante Mancini, Norwich
B – Elijah Rodriguez, St. Joseph (Conn.)
B – Noah Elmore, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
B – Michael Wildes, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
GK – Garfield Robinson, Albertus Magnus
OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Joseph Thongsythavong, Norwich
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR – Colin Grant, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR – Mamadi Jiana, Norwich
GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR – David Walbridge, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
COACH OF THE YEAR – Peter Hamasian, Albertus Magnus
TEAM SPORTSMANSHIP AWARD – Colby-Sawyer College
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
Arian Bobi, Albertus Magnus
EJ Gonzalez, Albertus Magnus
Rubelsi Moran, Anna Maria
Musa Jiana, Elms
Aidan Dwyer, Norwich
Mamadi Jiana, Norwich
Kam Jorgenson, Norwich
Cullen Swett, Norwich
Dane Stephens, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Rion Dos Santos, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
Gus Ford, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
ALL-SPORTSMANSHIP TEAM
Denis Blandon , Albertus Magnus
Caleb Wu, Anna Maria
Couper Gunn, Colby-Sawyer
Bryce Antoch, Dean
Tyler Hesselton, Elms
Matthew LaMondia, Emmanuel
Esteban Osorio, Johnson & Wales
Zack Laware, Lasell
Mason Reddington, Norwich
Marcos Rivera, Regis
Chris Antonelli, Rivier
Michael Torres, St. Joseph (Conn.)
Aidan Hickey, Saint Joseph's (Me.)
About The GNAC
The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 3,500 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.
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