SNHU men's soccer NE10 All-Conference graphic

League-High 11 From Men's Soccer Claim NE10 All-Conference Honors

11/12/2024 11:00:00 AM

Penmen sweep all five major awards and place seven on First Team

MANSFIELD, Mass. – The Southern New Hampshire University men's soccer team swept all five major awards and placed seven on the First Team, as a league-high 11 Penmen earned NE10 All-Conference accolades Tuesday.

The Penmen collected Player of the Year, Defensive Player of the Year, Goalkeeper of the Year, Rookie of the Year and Coach of the Year to become the first team since the five major awards started being handed out together in 1999 to attain the feat.

Junior Iago Perez (A Coruña, Spain) was crowned the NE10 Player of the Year and earned a spot on the NE10 All-Conference First Team. He is the sixth Player of the Year in program history and first since current assistant coach Alex Satrustegui won it in 2018. Perez, the Oct. 7 NE10 Player of the Week, has started nine of the 12 matches he has played in, scoring nine goals and dishing two assists for 20 points. Despite missing the first four contests of the season due to injury, Perez ranks second in the conference in goals and third in points. Perez' four game-winning goals are tied for the league lead. He was an NE10 Second Team selection last season.

Graduate student Liam Evans (Rock Hill, N.Y.) claimed Defensive Player of the Year honors and joined Perez on the First Team. Evans is the fourth Penmen Defensive Player of the Year and first since Dominic Samuel in 2015. Evans, the five-time NE10 Defensive Player of the Week this season (Sept. 23, Sept. 30, Oct. 7, Oct. 21, Nov. 11), is the only member of the team to have started all 16 matches. The Penmen, who have outshot opponents 258-154, rank second in the NE10 in goals allowed (14), goals-against average (0.88) and shutouts (8).

Senior Preston Neal (Windham, N.H.) was selected as the Goalkeeper of the Year and a First Teamer. Neal becomes the fourth individual to be named the league's top goalie, as the Penmen capture the honor for the sixth time and first since Nick Zucco in 2015. The two-time NE10 Goalkeeper of the Week (Oct. 7, Oct. 14) has started 14 of the 15 matches he has played in, finishing 11-1-2 with seven shutouts. Neal stopped 49 of the 60 shots he faced over 1274:31 for a 0.78 GAA and .817 save percentage. He ranks second in the league in both GAA and shutouts, as well as third in save percentage. He was a Second Teamer last season and an All-Rookie pick in 2022.

Freshman Gabriel Castro (León, Spain) was chosen as the Rookie of the Year, landed a spot on the First Team and received an All-Rookie Team nod. Castro is the fourth Penmen to win Rookie of the Year and the first since Sinisa Sprecakovic shared the honor in 2019. Castro has started all 14 matches he has played in, notching three goals and four assists for 10 points. He sits 10th in the NE10 in assists.

Josh Taylor, in his 10th year as head coach of SNHU, was named the Coach of the Year for the first time. It is the fourth occasion a Penmen bench boss has been chosen as the league's top coach and first since Marc Hubbard captured his third in 2013. Taylor has guided the Penmen to a 12-2-2 record, including 7-0-2 in NE10 play, as the team earned its sixth NE10 regular-season title and the No. 1 seed for the NE10 Championship. SNHU, which is currently ranked fifth in the United Soccer Coaches Division II Top 25 Poll, leads the league in goals scored (46) and assists (39).

Senior Philipp Herrmann (Bruckmuehl, Germany), sophomore Martin Zapata (Pamplona, Spain) and freshman Haroun Conteh (Glendale, Ariz.) joined their major-award-winning teammates on the First Team. Herrmann has played in all 16 matches with 15 starts, compiling 19 points on nine goals and an assist. Herrmann, who ranks second in the league in goals and game-winning goals (3), and fourth in points, was a member of the Second Team and All-Rookie Team in 2022.

Zapata has started 14 of the 15 matches he has suited up for, registering 22 points on seven goals and eight assists. He is tied for the league lead in points, outright leads in assists and is tied for fifth in goals.

Conteh, who also joined Castro on the All-Rookie Team, has started all 15 matches he has played in. A key cog along the Penmen back line, he was chosen as the Oct. 14 NE10 Rookie of the Week.

Sophomore Alex Pons (Castellón, Spain), another stingy Penmen defender, made the Second Team after starting 15 of the 16 matches he has played in.

Graduate student Martin Fuentes (Pamplona, Spain) and junior Alejo Caceres (Córdoba, Argentina) received Third Team selections. Fuentes has played in all 16 contests, including four starts, racking up 16 points on five goals and six assists. He ranks fifth in the NE10 in assists, sixth in points and 11th in goals.

Caceres has tallied nine points on a goal and seven assists, while starting 13 of the 15 matches he has played in. He ranks second in the league in assists.

The top-seeded Penmen play host to fourth-seeded Adelphi University at Ouellette Stadium in an NE10 Championship semifinal on Wednesday (Nov. 13) at 7 p.m.

SNHU 2024 NE10 Men's Soccer All-Conference

Major Awards

Player of the Year: Iago Perez
Defensive Player of the Year: Liam Evans
Goalkeeper of the Year: Preston Neal
Rookie of the Year: Gabriel Castro
Coach of the Year: Josh Taylor