INDIANAPOLIS – Quincy University junior forward Taylor Reis, along with Rockhurst University junior defender Paul Dean, Maryville University freshman goalkeeper Christian Kjaersgaard, and Rockhurst head coach Tony Tocco have garnered major postseason honors for the 2015 Great Lakes Valley Conference Men's Soccer season, it was announced by the league office Friday afternoon. Reis was voted by the league coaches as GLVC Offensive Player of the Year, while RU’s Dean was picked as the Defensive Player of the Year, the Saints’ Kjaersgaard was Freshman of the Year, and RU’s Tocco earned Coach of the Year accolades as voted by his peers. A total of 33 standouts were named to the 2015 All-Conference Teams. The annual awards were presented Friday at a reception on the afternoon ahead of the 2015 GLVC Championship Tournament.
Reis is the fourth Quincy standout to be honored as the league’s top offensive player as Jordan Roberts was selected just last season, while Grant Ellison was tabbed Offensive Player of the Year in 2011, and Matt Vollink earned co-Player of the Year in 2000. In league games, the Quincy, Ill., native posted a GLVC-best 20 points and nine goals, three of which were game-winners. He also added two assists against league foes while taking a team-high 42 shots. On September 21, Reis was named the Offensive Player of the Week after scoring two goals in the Hawks’ third and fourth Conference wins of the season, while the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) rewarded the squad with its highest ranking of the season at No. 9 just days earlier. The junior is an All-GLVC first-team pick this season after being named to the Third Team as a sophomore.
Dean becomes Rockhurst’s fifth Hawk to earn a major postseason award in men’s soccer but just the second top defender to be honored by the league’s coaches, as Chad Becker got Rockhurst’s first Defensive Player of the Year nod in 2008. The Overland Park, Kan., product anchored a Rockhurst defense that allowed just eight goals in 15 Conference matches, including holding GLVC opponents to a .076 shot percentage and producing 10 team shutouts. Additionally, Dean added some offensive statistics to his resume with seven points on three goals and one assist, using his head for a game-winner in a 1-0 win past the University of Missouri-St. Louis on October 11.
Kjaersgaard has etched his named into the GLVC records book for the second time this season, initially becoming Maryville’s first men’s soccer Player of the Week honoree on September 28 – before earning a second nod on Oct. 19 – and now as the Saints’ first ever player in the sport to win a major postseason award. Overall, the goalkeeper is the fourth Saint to be recognized as a first-year standout since Andrew Naegeli (baseball, 2012), Shelby Miller (women’s basketball, 2011-12) and Philine Schlorf (women’s tennis, 2014) were all acknowledged. The Vaxjo, Sweden, native made 45 saves in 1457:01 minutes of GLVC action, recording a .776 saves percentage and 0.80 goals against average en route to six shutouts. His mark for shutouts and goals against average was good for third-best in the loop and earned him an All-GLVC second-team spot.
Tocco is now a four-time GLVC Coach of the Year, which is the second-most for any current or former league skipper, having previously been recognized by GLVC coaches in 2008, 2011 and 2012. Entering this season, the 44-year veteran was second all-time among intercollegiate men’s soccer coaches with 644 career victories. He has added 14 more to that total during the 2015 campaign after leading his Hawks to a near perfect 14-1-2 overall record and a 13-1-1 league mark. Rockhurst was also a perfect 9-0 in home matches and garnered a No. 5 national ranking from the NSCAA earlier this week. This was the program’s third Regular Season Championship and 10th Championship Tournament appearance. As the top seed, the Hawks will be looking for their fifth tournament title, most recently emerging as back-to-back victors in 2012-13. In addition to Dean, Tocco mentored senior defender Nick Caruso and sophomore forward Kaleb Jackson to First Team All-GLVC honors, while junior midfielder Gianluca Bottoni, sophomore forward Adam Michel, junior forward Mitch Moncada, and junior defender Evan Craig gleaned second-team accolades.
Twenty-four other men's soccer stars earned recognition from the GLVC coaches, as three 11-member All-Conference teams were also released on Friday.
Of the 33 All-Conference selections, 21 honorees hailed from three teams, including a league-best nine from Indianapolis. Redshirt-sophomore goalkeeper Christopher Jones, junior forward Jacob Meyer and senior defender Julian Shamsaie were first-team Hounds. Rockhurst was close behind UIndy with its eight honorees, while Missouri S&T was the closest after that with four selections, including sophomore forward Felipe Andrade as the Miners’ lone first-team pick. With two winners apiece were Quincy – as the 2014 GLVC Freshman of the Year Artan Emini joined Reis on the First Team – UMSL, McKendree University, and the University of Wisconsin-Parkside. The Tritons’ senior midfielder Jon Huelsman earned first-team laurels, joined by Drury University senior midfielder Matt Clarkin. The Panthers, Saints, Saint Joseph’s College, the University of Southern Indiana and Truman State University rounded out the teams with one nominee each.
A complete list of the three All-Conference Teams and major postseason award winners follows below.
GLVC men's soccer action resumes Friday with top-seeded Rockhurst, No. 2 Indianapolis, No. 3 Quincy and No. 4 Missouri S&T competing in semifinal action of the 2015 GLVC Men's Soccer Championship Tournament, hosted by Rockhurst at Bourke Field in Kansas City, Missouri. Friday's semifinal rounds between Quincy and Indianapolis (5 p.m. CT) and Missouri S&T and Rockhurst (7:30 p.m.), along with Sunday's Championship final (1 p.m. CT) will be streamed live on the GLVC Sports Network at
GLVCsports.com/watch.
2015 MEN’S SOCCER ALL-GLVC TEAMS & POSTSEASON HONORS
Offensive Player of the Year
Taylor Reis, MF, Jr., QU
Defensive Player of the Year
Paul Dean, D, Jr., RU
Freshman of the Year
Christian Kjaersgaard, GK, Fr., MU
Coach of the Year
Tony Tocco, RU
FIRST TEAM
Matt Clarkin, MF, Sr., DU
Christopher Jones, GK, R-So., UINDY
Jacob Meyer, F, Jr., UINDY
Julian Shamsaie, D, Sr., UINDY
Felipe Andrade, F, So., S&T
Jon Huelsman, MF, Sr., UMSL
Nick Caruso, D, Sr., RU
Paul Dean, D, Jr., RU
Kaleb Jackson, F, So., RU
Artan Emini, F, R-So., QU
Taylor Reis, MF, Jr., QU
SECOND TEAM
David Kurz, D, So., UINDY
Josh Ling, MF, So., UINDY
Zak Mitiche, F, Sr., UINDY
Christian Kjaersgaard, GK, Fr., MU
Eduardo Abichabki, MF, Jr., S&T
Ryan Lawhead, D, Sr., S&T
Tyler Collico, F, Sr., UMSL
Gianluca Bottoni, MF, Jr., RU
Adam Michel, F, So., RU
Mitch Moncada, F., Jr., RU
Evan Craig, D, Jr., RU
THIRD TEAM
Joshua Hiquet, MF, Sr., UINDY
Brendon Widau, D, Sr., UINDY
Casey Zimmerman, MF, R-Sr., UINDY
Scott Armistead, GK, Sr., MCK
Felipe Thompson, F, Jr., MCK
Henning Schoene, D, Sr., S&T
Erick Turner, F, Fr., SJC
Josh Weinzapfel, MF, Sr., USI
Trevor Kaufmann, F, Fr., TSU
Evan Garcia, F, So., UWP
Mathew Yang, D, Sr., UWP