South Atlantic Conference Dominates NSCAA/adidas All-Appalachian Region Men’s Soccer Team With 16 Selections

ROCK HILL, SC - Sixteen South Atlantic Conference men's soccer players have been named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas All-Appalachian Region team.

Of the 11 First Team selections, 10 were SAC players. The SAC placed six on the Second Team, to take 16 of the 22 places on the squad.

Carson-Newman placed four, while Tusculum had three. Wingate and Catawba also had three selections. Lenoir-Rhyne, Newberry and Presbyterian each placed one on the team.

The Carson-Newman Eagles soccer team had four representatives on the First Team.

Goalkeeper Tyler Baldock (Surrey, British Columbia) was named the South Atlantic Conference Player of the Year in 2004 after compiling a 13-2-1 overall record with 78 saves and a 0.94 goals against average.

Sean Guiseppi (Port Coauitlam, British Columbia), a defender, was also an All-SAC selection and All-Region choice after scoring one goal and adding two assists. Brad Cobbs (Rocky Mount, Va.) led the Eagles in assists with 12 and added six goals on the season. Marius Arnesen (Bergen, Norway) was the Eagles leader in goals in 2004 with 14. He also had five assists. Cobbs and Arnesen were All-SAC selections this year.

The Eagles finished the season 17-2-1 and won their second consecutive SAC championship. C-N was ranked second in the final regular season poll and the Eagles were ranked first in the nation for two weeks during the regular season.

The Tusculum College men's soccer team had three of its members placed on the NSCAA/adidas All-Appalachian Region Team. Senior Paul Hopkins (Portsmouth, England) and junior Gerald Watt (Brampton, Ontario, Canada) were named to the First Team and senior Andre Nesfield (Arima, Trinidad) earned Second Team recognition.

Hopkins, a three-time All-Region honoree, led the South Atlantic Conference in points per match (2.55 ppm) and was second in goals per match (1.09 gpm). He became the first player since the reinstatement of the program in 1989 to lead the team in goals four straight seasons and was also the first TC player to be named First Team All-SAC four times. He ends his career as the league's all-time leader in goals (82) and points (194).

Watt earns All-Region recognition for the second time as he finished third on the team in goals (8), assists (6), and points (22) with three match-winning goals. Watt was named to the SAC All-Tournament Team and All-SAC First Team.

Nesfield ranked second on the team behind Hopkins in goals (13), assists (8), points (34) and match-winning goals (3). He was listed eighth in the SAC in goals per match (0.60) and seventh in points per match (1.60). Nesfield was also a Second Team All-SAC member.

Tusculum finished the season 17-3-2 and reached the NCAA Division II Tournament for the first time, reaching the Elite Eight before falling to eventual runner-up Southern Illinois University Edwardsville.

For Catawba, junior defender Kenny Crowe (Reeders, PA), was a first team selection, while junior Zay-Zay Gilewala (Monrovia, LIBERIA) and sophomore Nathan Zuzga (Troy, MI) were second team picks.

Crowe, a product of Pocono Mountain High School, makes the NSCAA team for the third straight year. He was a third team honoree as a freshman and was a first team selection last year. This season, Crowe played in 17 matches and scored eight goals, fourth on the team. He helped the defense to seven shutouts.

Gilewala, who played at Don Bosco High School, repeats his second team selection from a year ago. The forward led the team and ranked third in the South Atlantic Conference with 19 goals. The 19 goals ranks as the third best season in school history and he currently ranks fourth all-time with 34 goals in 40 matches.

Zuzga, a former standout at Troy High School, garners all-region honors for the first team. The forward ranked second on the team and fifth in the league with 13 goals. He also added five assists and ranked sixth in the SAC in total points. He is a two-time all-conference selection.

Catawba posted a 14-6 record in 2004 and were runners-up in the South Atlantic Conference. The Indians earned their first-ever bid to the NCAA II post-season tournament and lost 5-4 in overtime to the eventual regional champions.

Wingate University forward Benj Bostic (Wingate, N.C.) and defender Thomas Szvetitz (Valrico, Fla.) were named to the All-Appalachian Region first team, while freshman midfielder James Lavery (Belfast, Northern Ireland) was named to the All-Appalachian Region second team.

Szvetitz completes a triple play, as he was named All-Region three years in a row. Bostic is also a repeat selection, as he was named All-Southeast Region at Mars Hill College following the 2002 season.

Szvetitz is a four-time All-South Atlantic Conference performer. As a sophomore in 2002, Szvetitz was named honorable mention NSCAA/adidas NCAA Division II All-American. Thanks to his leadership, the Bulldogs won the 2002 Food Lion SAC tourney. Szvetitz earned All-Southeast Region first team honors in 2002 and 2003.

Wingate's freshman male Athlete of the Year award in 2001-02, Szvetitz picked up his scoring during his final campaign. The Jesuit High product had eight goals and four assists (20 points) during the 2004 season as Wingate compiled an 11-4-3 overall record.

Bostic's first year in the Wingate blue-and-gold was a memorable one, as the Forest Hills High graduate had 20 goals and five assists (45 points) for the Bulldogs. A first team All-SAC pick, he led the league in scoring for most of the season. Bostic was named SAC Player of the Week twice during the 2004 campaign.

The first graduate student in Wingate men's soccer history, Bostic played two years at Mars Hill. He earned All-SAC and All-Southeast Region honors in 2002. He won the SAC Scholar-Athlete Award in the fall of 2002 and the SAC Presidents' Award in the spring of 2003.

Lavery is the 2004 South Atlantic Conference Freshman of the Year. A first team All-SAC selection, Lavery had four goals and 10 assists (18 points) in 2004. He led the Bulldogs in assists. Lavery was second in the league in assists during his freshman season.

Newberry defender Miles Childers (Casper, Wyo.) was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA)/adidas All-Appalachian region second team.

Childers, one of Newberry's co-captains in 2004, scored three goals and added two assists for the Indians, including one match-winning goal against Brevard College. But it was his defensive prowess that turned the most heads this season, playing hard every game and anchoring a much improved Indian defense. His play was good enough to earn second-team All-South Atlantic Conference honors this season.

The men's soccer season ended on November 3rd, in a 1-0 loss to Wingate in the first round of the SAC tournament. The Indians compiled a 9-7-2 record, the best in school history, and finished the season ranked eighth in the NSCAA Appalachian Region rankings, a first for the program.

Presbyterian College men's soccer player Brandon Tucker (Englewood, Colo.) has been named to the 2004 NSCAA All-Appalachian Region second team it was announced over the weekend. Tucker, a 6-0, 167-pound freshman mid fielder led the Blue Hose with 10 goals and 21 points. He was also tied for the team lead with three game winning goals. PC, under the direction of fourth-year head coach, Bret Boulware, finished the season with a 9-9 record and 2-5 record in the South Atlantic Conference.

All-Appalachian Region Men's Soccer Teams
* indicates prior selections

FIRST TEAM
Pos. Name Class School Hometown
GK Tyler Baldock Soph. Carson-Newman Surrey, B.C.
DEF Thomas Szvetitz** Sr. Wingate Valrico, Fla.
DEF Sean Guiseppi Jr. Carson-Newman Port Coquitlam, B.C.
DEF Ben Clark Soph. Lenoir-Rhyne Chesterfield, England
DEF Kenny Crowe* Jr. Catawba Reeders, Pa.
MF Bradley Cobbs Jr. Carson-Newman Rocky Mount, Va.
MF Stanton Smith** Jr. Charleston (W.Va.) Belhar, South Africa
MF Gerald Watts* Jr. Tusculum Brampton, Ontario
F Paul Hopkins** Sr. Tusculum Portsmouth, England
F Benj Bostic* Jr. Wingate Wingate, N.C.
F Marius Arnesen Jr. Carson-Newman Bergen, Norway

SECOND TEAM
Pos. Name Class School Hometown
GK Chris Regan* Sr. Wheeling Jesuit (W.Va.) Pittsburgh, Pa.
DEF Jade Jones* Jr. Wheeling Jesuit (W.Va.) Erin, Trinidad
DEF Miles Childers Jr. Newberry Casper, Wyo.
DEF Jernej Kamensek Soph. Salem International (W.Va.) Maribor, Slovenia
DEF Nathan Zuzga Soph. Catawba Troy, Mich.
MF James Lavery Fr. Wingate Belfast, Northern Ireland
MF Bond Phittayasri* Soph. West Virginia Wesleyan Bowie, Md.
MF Brandon Tucker Fr. Presbyterian Englewood, Colo.
F Zay Zay Gilewala Jr. Catawba Monrovia, Liberia
F Milan Rakic Jr. Salem International (W.Va.) Belgrade, Serbia
F Andre Nesfield Sr. Tusculum Arima, Trinidad