Three teams headline 2016 UMAC Men's Soccer Awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.---Following the completion of an exciting Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) men's soccer season, student-athletes were recognized with all-conference honors with University of Northwestern senior Chris Cleope headling the honors as the UMAC Offensive Player of the Year, while the University of Wisconsin-Superior's Hugo Roos and Eric Watson earned Defensive Player of the Year and Rookie of the Year, respectively.
In addition to the three student-athletes taking the top awards, Paul Koelpin was recognized by his peers as the UMAC Coach of the Year after leading Martin Luther College to a fourth-place finish and the team's first appearance in the UMAC postseason since 2006.
Northwestern's Cleope had a breakout senior season for the Eagles leading the team in overall scoring (28 points) and conference scoring (16 points). He ranked fourth in the UMAC in conference games with 16 points and his five goals were tied for sixth-most. Cleope also ranked among the top 10 in the UMAC for shots and shots per game.
This season, Cleope was a critical part of the Eagles' success and third-place finish in the UMAC after missing the postseason a year ago. Cleope netted two conference game-winners including the deciding goal in a 4-2 win over Martin Luther that helped the Eagles earn the No. 3 seed in the tournament. In that same game, Cleope finished with one goal and two assists. He also tallied multiple points in four conference games and tallied at least one point in six of eight UMAC games.
On the defensive side, Roos anchored a Wisconsin-Superior back line that held conference opponents to just seven goals in the conference season for a team goals against average (GAA) of 0.863. Additionally, the sophomore defender also tallied six overall points this season which included a goal in a narrow 3-2 win over Northwestern near the end of the season to help clinch the No. 2 spot in the postseason.
The Yellowjackets also saw first-year player Eric Watson turn in an impressive rookie season in conference play. He recorded seven goals which tied for second-most against UMAC teams and 14 points which was seventh in conference games. The rookie tallied goals in five league games which included two each against Martin Luther and Northland College.
Under Koelpin's direction, Martin Luther jumped from seventh in 2015 to fourth this fall to make an appearance in the UMAC tournament. The Knights not only hosted the opening round game, but defeated Crown College 3-2 in overtime to advance to the semifinals where they held the champion Saints scoreless through 73 minutes before surrenduring just one goal in the loss. The Knights ranked among the top five teams in conference play for scoring average (2.0 goals per game), shots (193) and saves (59).
Wisconsin-Superior led all teams with nine honorees between All-UMAC First Team, Second Team and Honorable Mention, while St. Scholastica had eight and Northwestern had seven. St. Scholastica's Kyle Farrar was the lone player recognized to have earned All-UMAC First Team four times in his career after finishing his final season as one of the top scorers in the UMAC.
David Afolabi of North Central University earned All-UMAC First Team recognition for the second-straight season and ends his career with his third All-UMAC honor. John Bucklew of Wisconsin-Superior was also recognized with First Team honors for the second time in as many seasons, while teammates Ben Wilhelm and Ryan Wisdom were honored with All-UMAC awards last season as well.
Five players earned All-UMAC recognition for the third time in their careers including Matt Bitter (Bethany Lutheran College) Cody Christ (University of Minnesota Morris), Shawayne Folkes (St. Scholastica) and Matt McCann (Northwestern).
Five other players were honored with All-UMAC accolades for the second time in their careers including Joshua Bartels (Minnesota Morris), Ian Brekhus (North Central), Eric Fast (Northwestern), Ger Jones (Crown), and Aaron Markgraf (Martin Luther).
North Central won the team sportsmanship award, an accolade that is selected by the UMAC coaches and awarded to the team that best represents sportsmanship throughout the entire season, including the championship event. Each team also had one representative named to the individual sportsmanship award list.
*Offensive Player of the Year - Chris Cleope, Sr., Northwestern
#Defensive Player of the Year - Hugo Roos, So., Wisconsin-Superior
%Rookie of the Year - Eric Watson, Fy., Wisconsin-Superior
Coach of the Year - Paul Koelpin, Martin Luther
2016 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference First Team
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| David Afolabi |
North Central |
Sr. |
D |
Champlin Park, Minn. |
| John Bucklew |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
F |
Somerset, Wis. |
| Luke Buckton |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
MF |
Bath, England |
| *Chris Cleope |
Northwestern |
Sr. |
F |
Waterloo, Iowa |
| Josiah Donat |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
D |
Elk River, Minn. |
| Sam Eckamn |
Crown |
Sr. |
MF |
Edinboro, Penn. |
| Kyle Farrar |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
F |
London, England |
| Jonah Garcia |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
D |
Eagna, Minn. |
| Nathan Graumann |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
D |
Fort Atkinson, Wis. |
| Storm Heyer |
Crown |
Jr. |
F |
Zimmerman, Minn. |
| Gio Rodriguez |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
MF |
Rancho Cucamonga, Calif. |
| #Hugo Roos |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
D |
Halmstad, Sweden |
| David Villani |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
D |
Adelaide, South Australia |
| Ben Wilhelm |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
GK |
Stillwater, Minn. |
2016 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference Second Team
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Armin Bobaric |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
MF |
Andover, Minn. |
| Lucas Bonkrude |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
D |
St. Cloud, Minn. |
| Josue Boutouli |
North Central |
Fy. |
MF |
Lome, Togo |
| Ian Brekhus |
North Central |
Jr. |
F |
Prior Lake, Minn. |
| Cody Christ |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
GK |
Elk River, Minn. |
| Eric Fast |
Northwestern |
Sr. |
MF |
Eagan, Minn. |
| Shawayne Folkes |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
F |
Toronto, Ontario |
| Joseph Graumann |
Martin Luther |
Fy. |
F |
Fort Atkinson, Wis. |
| Kyle Hewitt |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
D |
Richmond Hill, Ontario |
| Lukas Majerle |
North Central |
Sr. |
D |
Little Falls, Minn. |
| Matt McCann |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
MF |
Marshfield, Wis. |
| Nathan Olin |
Northwestern |
So. |
D |
Somerset, Wis. |
| Ryan Wisdom |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
F |
Hayward, Wis. |
2016 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference Honorable Mention
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Derrick Aminga |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
MF |
Andover, Minn. |
| Joshua Bartels |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
MF |
Glenwood, Minn. |
| Matt Bitter |
Bethany Lutheran |
Jr. |
GK |
Bemidji, Minn. |
| Mark Cleope |
Northwestern |
Fy. |
F |
Waterloo, Iowa |
| Hector Gaona |
Northland |
So. |
F |
Roma, Texas |
| Gabe Hartwig |
North Central |
So. |
GK |
Eagle River, Wis. |
| Darby Henderson |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
MF |
Duluth, Minn. |
| Matt Hoszko |
Northland |
Sr. |
D |
Fronthill, Ontario |
| Ger Jones |
Crown |
Jr. |
F |
Bethel, Wales |
| Elijah Kroll |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
D |
Lake City, Minn. |
| Aaron Markgraf |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
MF |
Cincinnati, Ohio |
| James Menzeis |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
D |
Stillwater, Minn. |
| Dennis Morales |
North Central |
Fy. |
F |
Eagan, Minn. |
| Trygve Rennan |
St. Scholastica |
So. |
D |
Duluth, Minn. |
| Josh Robak |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
MF |
St. Cloud, Minn. |
| Austin Stuckart |
Northland |
Fy. |
D |
.New Berlin, Wis. |
| %Eric Watson |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
F |
Thunder Bay, Ontario |
2016 UMAC Men's Soccer Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award - North Central
Bethany Lutheran - Johnny Sehloff, Fy., Mankato, Minn.
Crown - Josiah Steinkamp, Jr., Penang, Malaysia
Martin Luther - Jacob Sheperd, Sr., Aurora, Colo.
Minnesota Morris - Bennett Purfeerst, So., Farmington, Minn.
North Central - Tyler Maag, Sr., Warrensburg, Mo.
Northland - Thomas Whiting, Jr., Ashland, Wis.
Northwestern - Matt McCann, Jr., Marshfield, Wis.
St. Scholastica - Josh Robak, Sr., St. Cloud, Minn.
Wisconsin-Superior - Sultan Almisfer, Jr., Khobar, Saudi Arabia