SAC Places Nine On Daktronics All-Region Men’s Soccer Team

GREENEVILLE, Tenn. - The South Atlantic Conference placed nine representatives on the 2009 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Men's Soccer Team.

Conference champion Carson-Newman College led the way with three selections, including two on the first team. Tusculum College and Lenoir-Rhyne University each had two, including one each on the first team. Mars Hill College and Wingate University each had one representative.

The Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Teams are voted on by the sports information directors of the Southeast Region. The region is comprised of the Conference Carolinas, the Peach Belt Conference, the South Atlantic Conference, Chowan University and North Greenville University

Members of the first team are now eligible for Daktronics NCAA Division II All-America honors.

The team is sponsored by Daktronics, Inc., an acknowledged world leader in scoring, timing and programmable display systems for virtually every sport at every level of competition.

Robert Hill	Matt Finlay
Omar Cooke	Anteneh Lemma
Sven Meyer	Dave Bailey
Jon Abraham	Rury Caulfied

Berin Boracic of Lees-McRae College was selected Southeast Player of the Year.

Carson-Newman

The Carson-Newman College Men's Soccer Team has placed three players on the 2009 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Teams.

Sophomore forward Robert Hill (Middlesbrough, ENGLAND) and junior defender Matt Finlay (Liverpool, ENGLAND) were named to the All-Southeast Region First Team while senior forward Omar Cooke (Roanoke, Va.) received second-team accolades.

Hill led the Eagles in scoring with 16 goals, 37 points and four match-winners, and added five assists while tallying two hat-tricks during the 2009 season. He was named to the All-South Atlantic Conference First Team and was the SAC Player of the Week for Oct. 20.

Finlay anchored the defense for Carson-Newman, a back line that only allowed 23 goals in 20 games this season. He received First-Team All-SAC honors as he recorded three goals and three assists for nine total points.

Cooke finished his senior season strong, being named to the All-SAC First Team and to the 2009 Food Lion SAC All-Tournament Team. He registered 11 goals and tied for a team-high six assists for 28 total points. Cooke also had two match-winning goals. He completes his career with 32 goals scored, good for fourth all-time in C-N history and 78 total points which is fifth in school history.

"It's a great achievement for these three players to get regional recognition for their accomplishments this season," said Head Coach Allen Vital. "It is especially great for Omar who is finishing his career at Carson-Newman. It is a well-deserved honor as they worked hard all season."

The Eagles finished 14-5-1 on the season and won the 2009 South Atlantic Conference Regular Season Title. They reached the NCAA Division II Tournament for the seventh straight year and advanced to the Southeast Region semifinals.

Tusculum

Senior midfielder Anteneh Lemma and junior defender Sven Meyer were selected to the 2009 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Men's Soccer Team.

Lemma was named to the First Team for the second consecutive season after leading the Pioneers to a 10-6-2 record, and the program's second straight Food Lion South Atlantic Conference Tournament title. A native of Stockholm, Sweden, Lemma scored 11 goals and tallied eight assists this season to pace the Pioneer attack with 30 points. The 5-7, 145-pound midfielder was also selected to the All-SAC First Team for the second consecutive season, garnering all-conference honors for the third straight year.

Meyer, a native of Buenos Aires, Argentina, garnered All-Southeast Region honors for the second consecutive season, earning a spot on the Second Team after being named to the First Team in 2008. The 5-11, 165-pound

Luke Mulholland

defender started each of Tusculum's 18 matches this season, notching an assist and helping the Pioneers hold their opponents to one goal or less in nine contests.

Tusculum is expected to return six starters and 14 letter-winners from this year's squad, as well as seven of its top ten scorers from this season's SAC Tournament championship team.

Lenoir-Rhyne

The Lenoir-Rhyne men's soccer team had two players named to the 2009 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Team. Junior forward Dave Bailey (Bath, ENGLAND) was a First-team Selection while junior defender Jon Abraham (Little Daddesden, ENGLAND) was named to the second team.

Bailey led the South Atlantic Conference in scoring as he tallied 15 goals during the 2009 campaign to go along with six assists. The forward currently ranks 10th nationally in scoring average (0.94 goals/game) in NCAA Division II Men's Soccer.

Abraham was a mainstay in the middle of the L-R defense throughout the 2009 season as he started 17 of the Bears' 18 games. Abraham tallied one goal on the season, a game-winner against Brevard at home on September 26.

Mars Hill

Mars Hill midfielder Rury Caulfied, from Glasgow, Scotland, was named to the Daktronics All-Southeast Region Second Team. He led the Lions this past season in goals (10), points (21) and game-winning goals (3). Caulfield ranked tied fifth in the South Atlantic Conference in game-winning goals, seventh in the league in goals and eighth in the conference in points.

Wingate

Wingate University junior midfielder Luke Mulholland (Preston, England) has been named the 2009 Daktronics All-Southeast Region First Team.

Mulholland, the 2009 SAC Men's Soccer Player of the Year, has been named first-team All-Conference each of his three seasons and was named a third-team All-American last season. This season, he is averaging 1.0 goal per match and 2.2 points per match.

2009 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-Southeast Region Men's Soccer Team

First Team
Pos. Name Yr. School
F Berin Boracic Sr. Lees-McRae College
F Adam Arthur Sr. Lander University
F Dave Bailey Jr. Lenoir-Rhyne University
F Robert Hill So. Carson-Newman College
MF Luke Mulholland* Jr. Wingate University
MF Anteneh Lemma* Sr. Tusculum College
MF Kash Knight Sr. Pfeiffer University
MF Lasse Sohrweide So. Anderson University
D Dale Parker Sr. Lees-McRae College
D Matt Finlay* Jr. Carson-Newman College
D Jamie Ramm Sr. Lander University
D Luke Duffy So. Lees-McRae College
GK Sean Paradise Sr. Lees-McRae College

Region Player of the Year: Berin Boracic, Lees-McRae College

Second Team
Pos. Name Yr. School
F Aaron Brittain Jr. Lander University
F Omar Cooke Sr. Carson-Newman College
F Richard Guffens Jr. Lees-McRae College
F Paulo Passini Sr. Anderson University
MF Kyle Timm Sr. Clayton State University
MF Rury Caulfield So. Mars Hill College
MF Kyle Clinton Sr. Francis Marion University
MF Renato Barbosa Sr. Pfeiffer University
D Jon Abraham Jr. Lenoir-Rhyne University
D Liam Brown Sr. Clayton State University
D Sven Meyer Jr. Tusculum College
D John Lesko Sr. USC Aiken
D Ivan Juric Jr. Francis Marion University
GK David Crisfofoli Sr. Clayton State University

* Denotes 2008 Daktronics All-Southeast Region selection