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SALVE REGINA UNIVERSITY SEAHAWKS
Posted: Oct 31, 2019

Kelly, O'Rourke headline nine Seahawks recognized for men's soccer

Salve Regina head coach Craig O'Rourke II joins eight of his Seahawks recognized on the 2019 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams. (All original photos by Kevin Kelly)
Salve Regina head coach Craig O'Rourke II joins eight of his Seahawks recognized on the 2019 Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams. (All original photos by Kevin Kelly)

NEWPORT, R.I. (October 31, 2019) - The Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC) announced its 2019 Men's Soccer All-Conference Teams and major award winners Thursday afternoon. Salve Regina University and Endicott College each had eight selections, tying for the most honorees in the group of 34.

The Gulls and Seahawks also captured most of the major awards. Endicott's Evan Couchot (Mason, Ohio) took home two awards as he was named the Offensive Player of the Year as well as the CCC Scholar-Athlete. His teammate Zach Regulbuto (Somers, Conn.) was the Rookie of the Year. Junior back Casey Kelly (Waldwick, N.J.) was named Defensive Player of the Year and his coach Craig O'Rourke II received his second straight CCC Coach of the Year nod. Gordon was the recipient of the Team Sportsmanship award.

Voting for the All-CCC Teams and major awards was conducted by the nine CCC head men's soccer coaches following the conclusion of the regular season.

All three student-athlete award winners were also All-CCC First Team selections. Couchot was one of four forwards selected along with the University of New England's Callum Heaslewood (London, England), Salve's Alessandro Oggiano (Stoughton, Mass.), and Nichols' Jacob Sargent (Bolton, Conn.). Three midfielders were selected to the First Team with Wentworth's Ryan Firmin (Gorham, Maine), Salve's Evan MacDonald (Candia, N.H.), and Endicott's Arian Pilja (Arlington, Mass.) all earning spots. The All-CCC First Team backline was made up of the Gulls' Charles Badji (Dakar, Senegal), the Seahawks' Kelly, and Bryan Doyle (Southington, Conn.) from Western New England. Endicott's Regulbuto and Salve's Seth Wolins (Wake Forest, N.C.) both earned First Team spots as goalkeepers.

There were six schools represented on the 11-member All-CCC Second Team with Gordon leading the way with three selections. The Fighting Scots were represented at forward by Julius Swaim (Bedford, Mass.), at midfield by Noah Craig (Corvallis, Ore.), and at back by Travis Singh (Fort Lauderdale, Fla.). Roger Williams, Salve Regina, and WNE each had two representatives on the Second Team. The Hawks' honorees were defender Garrett Bolton (Candia, N.H.) and goalkeeper Edmund Geschickter (Brookline, Mass.), while midfielder Jacob Guerra (Colchester, Conn.) and back James Davies (Tauranga, New Zealand) represented the Seahawks. Forward Brendan Claflin (Burlington, Mass.) and midfielder Charlie Argyle (Plymouth, Mass.) were the two Golden Bears selected. Rounding out the All-CCC Second Team were forwards Gabriel Chaves (Secaucus, N.J.) from Endicott and Griffin Price (Allendale, N.J.) from Wentworth.

Three forwards were honored as All-CCC Third Team members. They were Michael Oliveira (Waterville, Maine) from Roger Williams, Jarvin Ramirez (Milton, Ga.) from Gordon, and Dana Sundell (Nantucket, Mass.) from Salve. Sundell's teammate Noah Medeiros (Dartmouth, Mass.) was one of four midfielders selected to the Third Team. Joining him were Tyler Andrade (South Glastonbury, Conn.) and Javi Beltran (Fall River, Mass.) from RWU and Brandon Haughton (Hartford, Conn.) from Endicott. Two Endicott backs, Jon Breed (Atkinson, N.H.) and Will Hartan (Hebron, Conn.), were joined by Wentworth back John Dauphin (Yorba Linda, Calif.) and Gordon goalkeeper Brody Veleber (Coatesville, Pa.) as the All-CCC Third Team defense.

"Soccer is a team sport that can only be accomplished through the collective work of the group," says Coach O'Rourke. "But awards like this do permit for the individual abilities and skill set to be acknowledged and celebrated, so I am very happy for each of our eight recipients to be given the 'All-Conference' nod."

Casey Kelly has been a staple in the Salve Regina backline this year, centering a group that finished second in the league in goals-against average. The Seahawks defense allowed less than a goal per game (0.81) this season and posted eight shutouts. Four of those shutouts came in conference matches. Kelly's defensive group took a lot of the pressure off its goalkeepers this season as Salve net minders faced five or fewer shots in 14 of their 19 contests. Kelly's defensive prowess was recognized in the week ending Oct. 13 when he was named CCC Defensive Player of the Week.

"Our team nickname for (Casey Kelly) is 'Superman' because of the number of times that he just swoops in and saves the day for us. He not only executes his role and responsibility in our defensive scheme, but somehow always manages to compensate for others mistakes or lapses. Every season he just gets better and better, and now he has added a very strong tactical read and decision-making ability to his skill set that now allows him to run our offense and decide our penetration from his centerback position."

O'Rourke earns his second consecutive CCC Coach of the Year honor after leading Salve Regina to its second straight CCC regular-season title. The Seahawks went undefeated in league play this year with a 6-0-2 (12-4-3 overall) record. They featured one of the top offenses in the country scoring 2.89 goals per game, which currently ranks 18 in all of NCAA Division III. Salve Regina's 55 goals scored this season are 17 more than their closest conference competitor. However, the Seahawks' defense was solid as well, allowing the second fewest goals (16) in the league. O'Rourke's squad also ranked first in the league in assists (48) and corner kicks (152), while posting eight shutouts. They will be the No. 1 seed in the upcoming CCC Championship Tournament.

"This year, I was again fortunate to have three very capable men with whom I could share the load and enjoy the victories with (assistant coaches Jonathan Da Costa, Travis Pisano '18, Connor Woods '19). Any coach is only as good as his team performs, and this year's group had to overcome the proverbial hangover of last season's record-setting run and then nearly rebuild itself from the ground up. We lost more than 40% of the 2018 roster during the off-season due to one factor or another. I truly can't say enough about the combined efforts of our three captains – Noah Medeiros, Evan MacDonald, and Casey Kelly. The three of them have done so much over the course of the season to prepare and develop this team, and our success this year is a direct reflection of their sacrifice and commitment to Salve Regina men's soccer."