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USF Places Five on All-West Coast Conference Team
Nov. 18, 2009
Complete All-WCC Release in PDF Format
(San Francisco) - Five members of the USF men's soccer program were selected to the 2009 All-West Coast Conference Team as announced today by the league office. Senior All-American Conor Chinn led the conference in overall (10) and WCC (6) goals for the second consecutive season and was selected to the First Team for the second straight year. Junior forward Bryan Burke and senior midfielder Jonathan Levi earned second team nods, while junior midfielder Victor Cortez was an honorable mention. Goalkeeper Brendan Roslund captured all-freshman accolades. It was the second straight second team selection for both Burke and Levi. "We had high goals for this team and although we were not able to meet all of our expectations for the season, the players selected are very deserving of these accolades," USF head coach Erik Visser said. Chinn scored his final goal for the Green and Gold Friday at Portland, capping a prolific offensive career on the Hilltop. It was the 37th scoring strike of his career and vaulted the senior All-American into a share of seventh place on the Dons career goals list with two-time First Team All-American Staale Soebye (1991-94). It was also the 12th career game-winner for Chinn, who recorded a league-high six goals in WCC matches this season. The San Diego native shattered the single-season goals record in WCC matches with 14 last season and departs as the career WCC goals leader as well. In league play, Chinn struck for 20 goals, passing former teammate and 2004 WCC Player of the Year Aaron Chandler (2003-06) for the top spot. Chandler recorded 17 during his standout career. In 48 league matches, Chinn scored 20 goals - nine of them game-winners - to go along with eight assists for a league record 48 points. For his overall career, Chinn leaves with 37 goals, 12 game-winners, 12 assists and 86 points coming in 76 career contests. "Conor has been an outstanding player throughout his career at the University of San Francisco," Visser said. "Leading the conference in scoring in back-to-back seasons speaks to his truly prolific offensive talents. He will be very difficult to replace." Burke enjoyed a strong junior campaign up front for the Dons and led the team and ranked second in the WCC in assists with seven to go along with a pair of goals. In addition to setting career-highs in virtually every offensive category, Burke had a goal and two assists in USF's 4-1 season opening win against UMKC (9/1/09) and registered the game-winner against Bay Area rival Santa Clara (10/9/09). "Bryan Burke emerged as a leader and showed a lot of perseverance, heart and dedication and put another strong season together on the flank as a junior," Visser said. He showed a lot of passion, commitment and displayed a lot of resiliency in overcoming some nagging injuries." Once again, Levi was a dynamic force in the middle for the Dons as a senior and ranked second on the team in goals (3), assists (5) and points (11). Levi turned in a four-point night against UMKC (9/1/09) with a goal and two assists against the Kangaroos and had a two-assist night in a 2-0 shutout against Santa Clara (10/9/09). "For the last two years, Levi has been a great attacking, creating midfielder for us and came to play every game. He allowed us to play an exciting, attacking style of soccer," Visser said." Cortez enjoyed a strong junior season and showcased his versatility in a variety of roles for the Dons. A 2007 All-WCC Freshman Team selection, Cortez scored his first career goal against No. 19 San Diego (10/30/09). "Victor really responded to the challenge of becoming a more consistent player and he turned in his best year to date. I'm very happy with his growth and maturity," Visser said. Roslund played major minutes for the Dons in goal as a freshman and posted a 6-7 record with three shutouts, coming at New Mexico (9/5/09), against Santa Clara (10/9/09) and against No. 22 Portland (10/16/09). Roslund ranked fourth in the league in saves with 63. "Obviously when we recruited Brendan we expected him to be the goalkeeper of the future. He gained valuable experience as a freshman and he's going to be one of the mainstays of this program for years to come," Visser said. The University of San Diego, which posted an 8-2-2 conference record to capture its fifth WCC title, was awarded WCC Player of the Year and Freshman of the Year honors. Senior defender Ryan Peterman was named the league's Player of the Year while forward Patrick Wallen garnered Freshman of the Year honors. Second place finisher Saint Mary's College, which came off its best season in program history and will be making its inaugural appearance at the NCAA Tournament this year, took home the remaining individual honors with junior Jordan Grider being named the Defensive Player of the Year and Gaels' Head Coach Adam Cooper earning the league's top coaching accolade. Peterman was selected to the All-WCC first team last year and continued his impressive campaign this season as a starter in every game of his career with the Toreros. Peterman was a crucial part of the backfield this year, helping guide the WCC's top team to the most conference shutouts this season. Peterman also contributed on the front end with two assists and was pivotal in the Northwest contests late in the season. Grider is only the second Saint Mary's player to receive the Defensive Player of the Year award. Grider was instrumental in the Gaels' run to second place in the WCC standings, competing in all 12 conference games. Grider led a defense that recorded a new Saint Mary's single-season record with seven shutouts and tallied the second best record behind the conference champion in goals allowed. Wallen made notable contributions to the Torero campaign in his first collegiate season. In the month of October alone, Wallen earned WCC Player of the Month honors, after leading San Diego to a 7-1-0 overall and conference record, as well as recording four goals, two of which were game-winners, and three assists for 11 points. Cooper was awarded his first WCC Coach of the Year honor, after leading the Gaels to its first at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. Cooper led his team to its first 10-win season in Gael history (10-4-5), and his selection as Coach of the Year marked the first time a Saint Mary's coach has ever won this award. All seven WCC teams were represented on the All-WCC first team, with five players as repeat honorees, including Peterman, 2008 Player of the Year Conor Chinn, and 2009 WCC preseason all-conference team members Rafael Baca, Perdido, and Collen Warner. Every WCC team also had at least one player named to the All-WCC second team and all-freshman team. Player of the Year: Ryan Peterman, USD First-Team All-WCC Second Team All-WCC All-Freshman Team Honorable Mention
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