STANDISH, Maine – The 2021 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) postseason accolades have been announced and nine members of the 2021 GNAC Champion Saint Joseph's College side have earned honors.
Graduate defender Colin Grant (Harvard, Mass.) and graduate goalkeeper David Walbridge (Hampden, Mass.) headline the announcement for the Monks as First Team honorees and major award winners. Grant has been named as the 2021 Defensive Player of the Year and, for the second-consecutive season, Walbridge had claimed the GNAC Goalkeeper of the Year honor.
Freshman midfielder Rion Dos Santos (San Pãulo, Brazil) joins Grant and Walbridge on the First Team while senior forwards Kuma Onyejose (East Greenwich, R.I.) and Austin Ward (North Andover, Mass.) and senior midfielders Kyle Cocciardi (Windham, N.H.) and Jackson Fotter (Gorham, Maine) have collected Second Team acclaim.
Graduate defender Noah Elmore (Berlin, Vt.) and senior back Michael Wildes (Winslow, Maine) have been listed on the Third Team.
Grant garners GNAC Defensive Player of the Year honors after leading the Monks in goals (10), points (26), and game-winning goals (5) during the 2021 campaign. The third-year starter and team captain led a back line that notched a conference-best 0.61 goals against average and held Norwich's Joseph Thongsythavong and USJ's DeAnte Anderson - a duo that netted 43 goals combined this fall – scoreless over four games, a total of over 375 minutes, versus the Cadets and Blue Jays.
The Monks have held the GNAC Defensive Player of the Year honor for four-consecutive seasons, as Grant joins Dalton Gaumer '19, who claimed the award in 2017 and 2018, and 2019 honoree Noah Robinson '20.
Walbridge earns the GNAC Goalkeeper of the Year award for the second-consecutive season after leading the conference in goals against average (0.59), save percentage (.882), wins (14), and minutes (1534:29) during the 2021 campaign. Among all active NCAA DIII Men's Soccer keepers, Walbridge ranks third in goals against average (0.475) and save percentage (.863). In two seasons as the Monks' starter, he owns a 31-3-5 record with 14 shutouts.
With a pair of top keeper awards, Walbridge joins former teammate Blake Mullen '19, a three-time GNAC Goalkeeper of the Year recipient, as an SJC netminder has held the honor for five-consecutive seasons.
Dos Santos becomes the first St. Joe's men's soccer player to earn First Team All-GNAC honors since JoJo Strobino in 2016 after netting four goals with three assists for 11 total points this fall. The first-year midfielder showed a flair for the dramatic, as his first career goal – a double-overtime winner versus Emmanuel on September 25th - was one of the team's biggest strikes of the year. A highly skilled player with great field vision, Dos Santos will certainly play a major role in the Monks' future success.
Dos Santos, along with classmate Gus Ford (Falmouth, Maine), have also been listed on the GNAC All-Rookie Team. Ford also enjoyed a fine freshman campaign with six goals - including the game-clincher in double-overtime in a 1-0 GNAC Championship victory on Saturday - and two assists for 14 total points in 18 games.
Onyejose, a 2019 Third Team selection, earns Second Team honors after tallying seven goals and eight assists for 22 total points. The senior forward, perhaps the fasted player in the GNAC, ranked third in the conference in assists and ninth in points and heads into the NCAA Tournament with 17 goals and 14 assists for 48 total points over 61 career contests.
Also a 2019 Third Team honoree, Ward collects Second Team honors after netting six goals with five assists for 17 points during his senior season. Amazingly consistent, Ward tallied 18 points as a freshman and 16 as a sophomore and goes into the national tourney with 51 career points (19G, 13A) in 59 career games.
Cocciardi earns his first All-GNAC award after developing into one of the finest defensive-minded midfielders in the conference over the last two seasons. As a first-year starter in 2019, Cocciardi looked to be a force in the heart of the pitch before his season was cut short due to injury after just nine games. He fulfilled that potential this fall and is a major stakeholder in the Monks' success.
In his first year with the Monks after transferring from DII Bentley, Fotter quickly made his presence known as a pivotal player in the SJC midfield. With three goals and an assist for seven points, his offensive numbers do not do justice to his standing on the team. Fotter possesses excellent ball skills and field vision and often sets up scoring plays with the pass before the assist on SJC goals.
Elmore claims All-Conference honors for the first time after netting three goals with six assists for 12 total points during the 2021 campaign. Arguably the Monks' best all-around player, Elmore – rostered as a forward for his first three years – settled in as a defender this fall and provided the Royal Blue with an abundance of speed and athleticism from the backline. In 83 career games, Elmore scored 15 goals with 19 assists for 49 total points and tallied seven game-winners, including three this season.
Wildes rounds out the Monks' All-Conference docket with his first All-GNAC award following a stellar 2021 campaign. A key cog in the center of the Monks' backline, Wildes possesses a combination of strength and skill that is rarely seen at the DIII level. He has missed a few games to injury during his career and Saint Joseph's is a visibly different team without him on the field.
After defeating Norwich University, 1-0 in double-overtime, in the GNAC Championship on Saturday, Saint Joseph's has earned the GNAC's automatic qualifier into the 2021 NCAA DIII National Tournament. The Monks will learn of their first-round opponent during a live NCAA Selection Show, which airs on www.ncaa.com at 1:30 PM today.
2021 GNAC ALL-CONFERENCE TEAMS
