Champion Yellowjackets headline UMAC men's soccer postseason awards
ST. PAUL, Minn.---Following an unbeaten 11-0-1 Upper Midwest Athletic Conference (UMAC) men's soccer season, the University of Wisconsin-Superior highlighted the postseason conference awards taking three of the top four honors and having eight players named to one of the three all-conference teams announced Tuesday.
The Yellowjackets saw A.J. Olson named Defensive Player of the Year and Blake Perry named Rookie of the Year, while head coach Joe Mooney was selected Coach of the Year by his peers following the Yellowjackets' historic season. Joe Graumann of Martin Luther College was voted Offensive Player of the Year.
Graumann took the top nod in the awards after a breakout junior season in which he led Martin Luther College to a third-place finish in the standings and a historic upset win over the College of St. Scholastica. The forward led the UMAC in conference games in all three scoring categories with 10 goals, seven assists and 27 points. He led the league in total shots (51) and shots per game (4.64). His top performance came Oct. 2 when he tallied two goals and an assist in a win over North Central University. Graumann also recorded at least one goal and an assist in three conference games.
In his 11th season at the helm, Mooney led the Yellowjackets to their first-ever UMAC regular season championship and a second-consecutive postseason tournament and NCAA berth. The Yellowjackets put together their best season under Mooney with a record of 18-2-1 and currently own a 19-game unbeaten streak and 14-game winning streak. In conference games, the Yellowjackets dominated offensively with averaging 3.53 goals per game and boasting a 2.83 scoring margin.
As dominant as the Yellowjackets were offensively, defensively they were just as strong thanks to the solid play of top defender Olson. The sophomore anchored a defense that allowed just nine goals to UMAC opponents for a team 0.773 goals against average (GAA). He led the team in minutes played and helped the squad record four shutouts against UMAC teams. Additionally, Olson helped the 'Jackets defense hold conference opponents to just one goal or fewer in a 11 of 12 regular season league games.
Perry was key contributor for the Yellowjackets offensively in his first season of play. The rookie ranked seventh in goals (7) and points (16) which was the most by any first-year player in the UMAC. Perry also tallied two conference game-winning goals. His top performance came when he scored two goals and added two assists in a win over Northland College on Sept. 18. He was the only rookie named All-UMAC First or Second Team.
The Yellowjackets topped the all-conference awards with four First Team selections to lead their total eight across all three teams. Runner-up St. Scholastica and Crown College each posted the next highest total with six total honorees. For the Saints, that includes Luke Buckton who is the only player to have been selected All-UMAC First Team three years in a row.
Ger Jones of Crown College is the only player to have appeared on the all-conference lists all four of his competitive seasons. He has three times been named Honorable Mention and was a Second Team pick in 2014. He missed 2017 due to injury.
Buckton and Graumann are two of seven players players to earn honors on one of the three all-conference teams three times in their careers. The other players with three honors include Derrick Aminga (University of Northwestern), Josue Boutouli (North Central), Hector Gaona (Northland), Trygve Rennan (St. Scholastica) and Eric Watson (Wisconsin-Superior).
There were 12 other individuals who have been selected to one of the three all-conference teams at least twice in their careers including Gabe Arreguin (University of Minnesota Morris), Armin Bobaric (St. Scholastica), Eli Etzel (Crown), Cole Hempfling (Crown), Storm Heyer (Crown), Adrian Leal (Wisconsin-Superior), Alex Keller (Minnesota Morris), Aidan Reilly (Northland), Mason Shrewsberry (Crown), Austin Stuckart (Northland), Aaron Swanson (Martin Luther) and Danny Williams (North Central).
Crown 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 - Joe Graumann, Jr., Martin Luther
#Defensive Player of the Year - A.J. Olson, Sr., Wisconsin-Superior
%Rookie of the Year - Blake Perry, Fy., Wisconsin-Superior
Coach of the Year - Joe Mooney, Wisconsin-Superior
2018 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference First Team
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Felix Blick |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
D |
Linkoping, Sweden/Katedralskolan |
| Armin Bobaric |
St. Scholastica |
Jr. |
MF |
Andover, Minn./Andover |
| Josue Boutouli |
North Central |
Jr. |
MF |
Lome, Togo/Eagan |
| James Bruce |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
F |
Gladstone, Mich./Gladstone |
| Luke Buckton |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
F |
Bath, England/Writhlington School |
| Joe Graumann* |
Martin Luther |
Jr. |
F |
Fort Atkinson, Wis./Lakeside Lutheran |
| Alex Keller |
Minnesota Morris |
Sr. |
D |
St. Cloud, Minn./St. Cloud Tech |
| Adrian Leal |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
MF |
Alicante, Spain/IES Cabo de la Huerta |
| A.J. Olson |
Wisconsin-Superior |
So. |
D |
Chanhassen, Minn./Chanhassen |
| Gabriel Plocher |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
GK |
Vassar, Mich./Michigan Lutheran Seminary |
| Trygve Rennan |
St. Scholastica |
Sr. |
D |
Duluth, Minn./Duluth East |
| Aaron Swanson |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
D |
Rochester, Minn./St. Croix Lutheran |
2018 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference Second Team
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Elliot Chapman |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Sr. |
MF |
Lancaster, England/Ripley St. Thomas |
| Cole Hempfling |
Crown |
Jr. |
D |
Cape Coral, Fla./North Fort Myers |
| Storm Heyer |
Crown |
Sr. |
F |
Zimmerman, Minn./Zimmerman |
| Tyler Hurley |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
MF |
Bloomington, Minn./Eden Prairie |
| Josh Koelpin |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
MF |
New Ulm, Minn./Minnesota Valley Lutheran |
| Blake Perry% |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Fy. |
F |
Anoka, Minn./Anoka |
| Aidan Reilly |
Northland |
Jr. |
D |
Champaign, Ill./Parkland College |
| Abel Solis |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
D |
Marshall, Minn./Marshall |
| Dalton VonKaenel |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
GK |
Eagan, Minn./Eagan |
| Eric Watson |
Wisconsin-Superior |
Jr. |
F |
Thunder Bay, Ontario/Hammarskjold |
| Danny Williams |
North Central |
Sr. |
F |
Coon Rapids, Minn./Spring Lake Park |
2018 UMAC Men's Soccer All-Conference Honorable Mention
| Name |
School |
Yr. |
Pos. |
Hometown |
| Derrick Aminga |
Northwestern |
Jr. |
MF |
Andover, Minn./Andover |
| Gabe Arreguin |
Minnesota Morris |
Jr. |
MF |
Waseca, Minn./Waseca |
| Eli Etzel |
Crown |
Sr. |
GK |
Buffalo, Minn./Buffalo |
| Jordan Finneran |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
F |
Newmarket, England / Cambridge Regional College |
| Hector Gaona |
Northland |
Sr. |
F |
Roma, Texas/Juan Diego Academy |
| Lucan Harmon |
Minnesota Morris |
Fy. |
GK |
Winona, Minn./Winona |
| Finigan Huffington |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
MF |
Georgetown, Cayman Islands / John Gray |
| Ger Jones |
Crown |
Sr. |
F |
Bethel, Wales/Brynrefail School |
| Riley Loukinen |
North Central |
Jr. |
D |
Little Falls, Minn./Little Falls |
| Nikita Pyatetskiy |
Bethany Lutheran |
Fy. |
MF |
Cambrils, Spain/Ramon Berenguer IV |
| Josh Samsa |
Crown |
Sr. |
D |
Cambridge, Minn. / Cambridge-Isanti |
| Mason Shrewsbury |
Crown |
Jr. |
MF |
Prior Lake, Minn./Prior Lake |
| Austin Stuckart |
Northland |
Jr. |
D |
New Berlin, Wis./New Berlin Eisenhower |
| Devon Thompson |
Minnesota Morris |
So. |
D |
Moorhead, Minn./Moorhead |
| Taylor Tran |
St. Scholastica |
Fy. |
D |
Northridge, Calif./Granada Hills Charter |
| Hugo Ugalde-Bemer |
Martin Luther |
Sr. |
F |
Cedar Rapids, Iowa/Luther Prep |
2018 UMAC Men's Soccer Sportsmanship Awards
Team Award - Crown
Bethany Lutheran - Antonino Guerrero, Sr., Mankato, Minn./Mankato West
Crown - Caleb Baumann, Jr., Columbia Falls, Montana/Columbia Falls
Martin Luther - Dan Wessel, Sr., New Ulm, Minn./Minnesota Valley Lutheran
Minnesota Morris - Isaac Kauffman, Fy., Minot, N.D./Minot
North Central - Noah Ramsby, Sr., Detroit, Mich./Parkway Christian
Northland - Jeremiah Wilson, So., Edwardsburg, Mich./Edwardsburg
Northwestern - Josh Robertson, Sr., Excelsior, Minn./Southwest Christian
St. Scholastica - Taylor Tran, Fy., Northridge, Calif./Granada Hills Charter
Wisconsin-Superior - Leo Paredes, Sr., Uberlandia, Brazil/Colegio Sao Paschoall