Jake Richards, Rojay Smith Named All-Conference
MELBOURNE, Fla. - Twenty-four men's soccer student-athletes are recognized as ALL-SSC for the 2019 season, including Jake Richards and Rojay Smith from the University of Tampa.
SSC champion Lynn University boasts seven awards, including Defensive Player of the Year and Coach of the Year. Voting for the team was conducted among the league's men's soccer coaches.
Richards, a senior goalkeeper from Bedworth, England, is a four-year starter who has been named all-conference each of his four years as a Spartan. As a senior, he played in 13 games, with a 1.65 GAA to go with 65 saves to lead all SSC keepers. He finishes his career with 239 saves, which ranks fourth on the all-time list. He is also second in saves per game (4.27), eighth in wins (24) and ninth in minutes played (5,141).
Smith, a forward from Portmore, Jamaica, was the team-leader with 17 points. He concluded the season with six goals and a team-high five assists. He also netted two game-winning goals while being credited with 40 shots, including 15 on target.
Cadu Cusatis of Palm Beach Atlantic University is named Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year following 26 points from 12 goals and two assists in 15 games. The senior from Sao Paulo, Brazil, ranked first in SSC points, points per game (1.73), goals, and goals per game (.800) during the regular season. Cusatis is the 11th men's athlete to win Player of the Year and Offensive Player of the Year in the same season, first from PBA. He is the second Sailfish to be named Player of the Year1 and first to be named Offensive Player of the Year.
SSC Men's Soccer History: ALL-SSC Teams | Players & Coaches of the Year | Conference Champions | National Champions
Lynn's Rodrigo Fernandez has been tabbed Defensive Player of the Year by conference coaches. The Mexico City native becomes the sixth Fighting Knight to earn the award2, first since 2014. Fernandez led a defense that tallied four shutouts while holding opponents to a 0.98 goals-against average.
Ellis Hudson of Florida Tech takes the Freshman of the Year honors in 2019. The midfielder started in 11 games for the Panthers this season and provided his team with four goals and an assist. Hudson is the fourth Florida Tech athlete to earn SSC Freshman of the Year, first since 20173.
John Rootes was selected as Coach of the Year by his peers for the third time4. He guided Lynn to a 12-1-1 overall record, the program's 10th conference championship, and the top seed in the 2019 SSC tournament.
Richards from the University of Tampa highlights the repeat All-SSC winners as he earns his fourth consecutive All-SSC Second Team honor. He is the 43rd men's soccer athlete to earn four straight all-conference awards, first since 20165. Sebastian Loibl from Nova Southeastern University is awarded his second consecutive First Team honor, while PBA's Claudio Rivadeneira also earns the second All-SSC award of his career.
Player of the Year: Cadu Cusatis, Palm Beach Atlantic
Offensive Player of the Year: Cadu Cusatis, Palm Beach Atlantic
Defensive Player of the Year: Rodrigo Fernandez, Lynn
Freshman of the Year: Ellis Hudson, Florida Tech
Coach of the Year: John Rootes, Lynn
| 2019 Men's Soccer ALL-SSC First Team | ||||
| Pos. | Name | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | Cadu Cusatis | Palm Beach Atlantic | Sr. | Sao Paulo, Brazil |
| F | Agustin Pertusso | Eckerd | Jr. | Rocha, Uruguay |
| F | Guillermo Segovia | Florida Tech | Sr. | Madrid, Spain |
| F (AL) | Sebastian Loibl^ | Nova Southeastern | Jr. | Hutthurm, Germany |
| M | Alex Horveno | Lynn | Jr. | Loire-Atlantique, France |
| M | Jan Luca Ahillen | Nova Southeastern | Gr. | Bensheim, Germany |
| M | Luca Campanini | Florida Tech | Sr. | Satellite Beach, Fla. |
| D | Rodrigo Fernandez | Lynn | Sr. | Mexico City, Mexico |
| D | Curtis Thorn | Nova Southeastern | Gr. | Hampshire, England |
| D | Mo Redjeb | Palm Beach Atlantic | Jr. | Leverkusen, Germany |
| G | Jason Fesquet | Florida Tech | So. | Brittany, France |
| - | ||||
| 2019 Men's Soccer Second Team | ||||
| Pos. | Name | School | Yr. | Hometown |
| F | Lukas Ostermann | Lynn | Sr. | Saterland, Germany |
| F | Claudio Rivadeneira^ | Palm Beach Atlantic | Sr. | San Fernando, Chile |
| F | Rojay Smith | Tampa | Sr. | Portmore, Jamaica |
| F | Michael Lawrence | Nova Southeastern | So. | Miramar, Fla. |
| M | Eduardo Capote | Florida Southern | Jr. | Navacerrada, Spain |
| M | Craig McCall | Florida Tech | Sr. | Glasgow, Scotland |
| M | Joao Delgado | Lynn | Sr. | Riachos, Portugal |
| D | Erlend Eikeland | Florida Tech | Gr. | Oslo, Norway |
| D | Stian Hagboe Olsen† | Florida Tech | Jr. | Molde, Norway |
| D | Julian Kersting | Lynn | Jr. | Oldenburg, Germany |
| G | Jake Richards*~# | Tampa | Sr. | Bedworth, England |
| G (AL) | Maximillian Obermeier | Rollins | Fr. | Munich, Germany |
^ = 2018 First Team All-SSC
* = 2018 Second Team All-SSC
† = 2017 Freshman of the Year
~ = 2017 Second Team All-SSC
# = 2016 Second Team All-SSC
(AL) = At Large Selection
1 Charlie Dennis (2017)
2 Jason Sangha (2014), Tim Melia (2007), Leon Jackson (2006), Ross Lumsden (2003), Julien Fruitier (2001)
3 Stian Hagboe Olsen (2017), Ross Allen (2006), Stephen Bames (1997), Martin Peat (1994)
4 John Rootes (2014, 2016, 2019)
5 Tosan Popo, Rollins College (2013-16)