Men's soccer picked to win AAC; 2 Mustangs honored
Posted: Mon Jan 25, 2021 5:54 pmFrom SMUMustangs.com:
SMU Selected As AAC Preseason Favorite, Two Athletes Receive Honors
IRVING, Texas (AAC/SMU) – SMU men's soccer ranks first in the conference preseason poll and gathered multiple preseason honors, the American Athletic Conference announced on Monday.
The Mustangs received five of the possible six first place votes in the preseason coaches' poll and head into the 2020-21 season after a stellar 2019 campaign that led to a third-consecutive conference tournament title and the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament. SMU is led by three seniors and returns seven of the 11 primary starters from the 2019 season.
Gabriel Costa was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and earned a unanimous selection to the Preseason All-Conference Team. The junior midfielder finished the 2019 season with nine goals on 23 shots on goal and 11 assists. His 0.61 assists per game average ranked third in the NCAA. Among many postseason accolades, Costa was named the AAC Co-Midfielder of the Year, AAC All-Conference First Team member, United Soccer Coaches Third Team All-American and Top Drawer Soccer Second Team All-American.
Knut Ahlander was also named a unanimous Preseason All-Conference Team player. In 2019, the junior midfielder started in all 21 games and tallied seven goals and a Division I-high 13 assists. The assists per game average of 0.62 was second in the NCAA. Ahlander was named to the AAC All-Conference Second Team as well as the United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Third Team.
This is the sixth-consecutive year that at least one Mustang has been selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
2020 American Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
Team — First Place Votes — Points
1. SMU — 5 — 25
2. UCF — 1 — 21
3. USF — 0 — 17
4. Memphis — 0 — 10
Temple — 0 — 10
6. Tulsa — 0 — 7
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Gabriel Costa, Jr., M, SMU
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Pierre Cayet, Sr., D, Temple
Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
Yannik Oettl, Sr., UCF*
Preseason All-Conference Team
Yanis Leerman, Jr., D, UCF*
Yannik Oettl, Sr., GK, UCF*
Louis Perez, Sr., M, UCF*
Yoni Sorokin, Sr., M, UCF*
Gino Vivi, So., F, UCF*
Peter Chang, R-So., F, Memphis
Gurman Sangha, Jr., F, Memphis
Gabriel Costa, Jr., M, SMU*
Knut Ahlander, Jr., M, SMU*
Avionne Flanagan, Sr., D, USF*
Pierre Cayet, Sr., D, Temple
Sean Karani, So., F, Temple
Mitchell Cashion, Jr., D, Tulsa*
*denotes unanimous selection
SMU Selected As AAC Preseason Favorite, Two Athletes Receive Honors
IRVING, Texas (AAC/SMU) – SMU men's soccer ranks first in the conference preseason poll and gathered multiple preseason honors, the American Athletic Conference announced on Monday.
The Mustangs received five of the possible six first place votes in the preseason coaches' poll and head into the 2020-21 season after a stellar 2019 campaign that led to a third-consecutive conference tournament title and the quarterfinal round of the NCAA Tournament. SMU is led by three seniors and returns seven of the 11 primary starters from the 2019 season.
Gabriel Costa was named the Preseason Offensive Player of the Year and earned a unanimous selection to the Preseason All-Conference Team. The junior midfielder finished the 2019 season with nine goals on 23 shots on goal and 11 assists. His 0.61 assists per game average ranked third in the NCAA. Among many postseason accolades, Costa was named the AAC Co-Midfielder of the Year, AAC All-Conference First Team member, United Soccer Coaches Third Team All-American and Top Drawer Soccer Second Team All-American.
Knut Ahlander was also named a unanimous Preseason All-Conference Team player. In 2019, the junior midfielder started in all 21 games and tallied seven goals and a Division I-high 13 assists. The assists per game average of 0.62 was second in the NCAA. Ahlander was named to the AAC All-Conference Second Team as well as the United Soccer Coaches All-East Region Third Team.
This is the sixth-consecutive year that at least one Mustang has been selected to the Preseason All-Conference Team.
2020 American Athletic Conference Men's Soccer Preseason Coaches' Poll
Team — First Place Votes — Points
1. SMU — 5 — 25
2. UCF — 1 — 21
3. USF — 0 — 17
4. Memphis — 0 — 10
Temple — 0 — 10
6. Tulsa — 0 — 7
Preseason Offensive Player of the Year
Gabriel Costa, Jr., M, SMU
Preseason Defensive Player of the Year
Pierre Cayet, Sr., D, Temple
Preseason Goalkeeper of the Year
Yannik Oettl, Sr., UCF*
Preseason All-Conference Team
Yanis Leerman, Jr., D, UCF*
Yannik Oettl, Sr., GK, UCF*
Louis Perez, Sr., M, UCF*
Yoni Sorokin, Sr., M, UCF*
Gino Vivi, So., F, UCF*
Peter Chang, R-So., F, Memphis
Gurman Sangha, Jr., F, Memphis
Gabriel Costa, Jr., M, SMU*
Knut Ahlander, Jr., M, SMU*
Avionne Flanagan, Sr., D, USF*
Pierre Cayet, Sr., D, Temple
Sean Karani, So., F, Temple
Mitchell Cashion, Jr., D, Tulsa*
*denotes unanimous selection