SOUTHBURY, Conn. - - In preparation for the Central Atlantic Collegiate Conference Tournament semifinals on Friday, the Wilmington University men's soccer team took part in honoring senior Kresimir Nurnberger who was named All-CACC Second Team at the CACC Banquet on Thursday night at the Crown Plaza Hotel.
The Wildcats advance to the CACC Semifinals after a thrilling come from behind 3-2 victory over fourth seeded Bloomfield College on the road on Wednesday night in the quarterfinals. They advance to play host and number one seed Post University on Friday at 12 p.m.
Nurnberger earned a postseason award for the first time in his career at Wilmington, leading the Wildcats to a 12-7 overall record and a fifth seed in the CACC Tournament.
The senior captain led the team with 16 points, pouring in three goals and 10 assists while playing in all 19 matches. His 10 assists leads the CACC and ups his career total to 22, putting him second all-time in Wilmington history while only playing two seasons.
Starting in 18 of the 19 matches, Nurnberger had a season high four points on October 18 against Holy Family. He assisted on the first two goals of the game, starting the goals with corner kicks before putting in the game-winner himself for the third goal. He also tallied two assists in a 4-3 victory against Nyack.
Top seeded and host Post University swept the major award at the annual team banquet, as Joe Baccielo was named the CACC Player of the Year and Raphael Moura was voted as the CACC Rookie of the Year. Eagles' coach Ted Haley was also named the CACC Coach of the Year. Goldey-Beacom College wrapped up the awards by being named with the CACC Team Sportsmanship Award.
The CACC Semifinals are set to begin on Friday, as No. 5 Wilmington will face No. 1 Post at 12 p.m. at LaMoy Field. In the other semifinal, No. 6 Nyack will take on No. 2 Dominican starting at 2:30 p.m.
AGATE:
2012 All-CACC Men's Soccer Teams
First Team:
GK – Errol Reid, Post University
D – Felix Horn, Nyack College
D –Kevin Ipina, Post University
D – Momar Diop, Bloomfield College
M – Marco Likos, Nyack College
M – Sony Narro, Dominican College
M – Pedro De araujo, Dominican College
F – Joe Baccielo, Post University
F – Dodji Freitas, Holy Family University
F – Ben Kwast, Nyack College
AL - Travis Lobb, Philadelphia University
Second Team:
GK – Neil Kwiatkowski, Philadelphia University
GK – Andres Ruiz, Dominican College
D – Steven Hobart, Bloomfield College
D – Ani Lekaj, Post University
D – Keleenna Onyeaka, Felician College
M – Diego Mayanga, Bloomfield College
M – Gustavo Ferreira, Post University
M – Josh Delva, Felician College
F – Jorge Zubillaga, Dominican College
F – Kemar Richards, Bloomfield College
F – Facundo Zalazar, Caldwell College
AL - Kresimir Nurnberger, Wilmington University
Honorable Mention:
Matthew Shutter (Dominican College), Ira Woodruff (Holy Family University), Steve Petrosino (Caldwell), Mikey Robinson (Nyack)
2012 CACC Player of the Year: Joe Baccielo, Post University
2012 CACC Rookie of the Year: Raphael Moura, Post University
2012 CACC Coach of the Year: Ted Haley, Post University
2012 CACC Team Sportsmanship Award: Goldey-Beacom College