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UVU'S MILNE, UTRGV'S CASTILLO NAMED PLAYERS OF THE WEEK
Utah Valley's Skyler Milne and UT Rio Grande Valley's Leo Castillo have been named Western Athletic Conference Offensive and Defensive Players of the Week, respectively, for Aug. 29 - Sep. 4.
Milne, a senior forward from Bluffdale, Utah (Brighton HS), kept the 18th-ranked Wolverines undefeated, scoring three goals in a pair of wins in Illinois. On Friday against Evansville, he scored twice to record the brace, adding an assist, as UVU earned a 4-2 win. He continued the strong weekend on Sunday, scoring the game-winning goal in a 1-0 win over Bradley en route to Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic MVP honors.
Castillo, a senior goalkeeper from Houston (Tyler JC), made five saves to earn his first shutout of the season and the third of his career in a 1-0 win over Presbyterian. He now holds a 0.45 goals-against average in 200 minutes in goal.
Other offensive nominees: UT Rio Grande Valley's Jaakko Hietikko scored his first career goal in a 1-0 win over Presbyterian.
Other defensive nominees: Incarnate Word's Jorge Guzman played 180 minutes between the pipes for UIW, allowing just two goals as the Cardinals fell twice in upstate New York … Utah Valley's Elliott Rubio was named to the All-Tournament team at the Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic after earning a pair of wins for the Wolverines.
STATISTICALLY SPEAKING
UNLV leads the WAC in shots (47) while Utah Valley holds the lead in points (23), goals (7) and assists (9). UT Rio Grande Valley is tops in both goals allowed (1) and goals against average (0.31) while UNLV has the most saves (24).
UNLV's Danny Musovski is the league leader in shots (14). UVU's Paul Hoffmeister holds the top spot in points (8), goals (4) and game-winning goals (2). Houston Baptist's Marc Anthone is tops in assists (3) while UTRGV's Leo Castillo holds the top goals against average (0.45) and save percentage (.900). UNLV's Nathan Bohm has a league-high 19 saves.
RAINED OUT
After playing 45 minutes, the season opener between Central Arkansas and UMKC was officially cancelled with UCA leading 1-0 after a storm went through Kansas City on Friday night, causing flash floods throughout the city. The ‘Roos will now officially open the season on Wednesday at Tulsa.
NATIONALLY RANKED
Utah Valley continues to climb in the national polls, moving up to eighth in the Top Drawer Soccer Top 25, 12th in the NSCAA Coaches' Poll and 14th in the College Soccer News Top 30. Seattle U remains nationally ranked in the TDS Top 25 at 24 and is among those receiving votes in the other national polls.
BEST IN THE WEST
The WAC continues to be well-represented in the NSCAA West Region Rankings. Utah Valley remains steady at number two, trailing only Denver. Seattle U is fourth, followed by UNLV at seventh and Grand Canyon at ninth.
SKY'S THE LIMIT
UVU forward Skyler Milne was named to the College Soccer News Team of the Week after earning MVP honors at the Hotels at Grand Prairie Classic in Peoria, Ill.
THE HOFF
After scoring twice in a home win over Washington, Utah Valley's Paul Hoffmeister was named to the College Soccer News Team of the Week. He was also listed among those considered for the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week after the opening week of the season.
BJORNETHUN, OLSEN HIGHLIGHT PRESEASON ALL-WAC SQUAD
Seattle U defender Kyle Bjornethun and forward David Olsen were selected as WAC Preseason Defensive and Offensive Player of the Year respectively in a vote of the league's 11 head coaches, who could not vote for their own team or players. Redhawks midfielder Sergio Rivas joining his teammates on team. Utah Valley had three players as Skyler Milne, Paul Hoffmeister and Alex Neff all picked up preseason honors. UNLV and San José State each had two players with the Rebels represented by Danny Musovski and Richard Garness and the Spartans represented by Rory Knibbs and Jonathan Colunga. Grand Canyon's Amer Sasivarevic represented the Lopes to round out the 11-player squad.
THREE NAMED TO MAC HERMANN WATCH LIST
Seattle U's Kyle Bjornethun and David Olsen and UNLV's Danny Musovski are among those on the watch list for the 2016 Missouri Athletic Club's (MAC) Hermann Trophy. Olsen was a semiThrough 9/5ist for the 2015 WAC Hermann Trophy, Bjornthun was the 2015 WAC Defensive Player of the Year and Musovski earned 2015 WAC Offensive Player of the Year honors. All three were also named NSCAA All-Americans last season with Olsen earning First Team honors and Bjornethun and Musovski each picking up Second Team honors.
PRESEASON ALL-AMERICANS
After helping the Redhawks bust onto the national scene last season, Seattle U forward David Olsen and defender Kyle Bjornethun were named First Team Preseason All-Americans by CollegeSoccerNews.com. UNLV forward Danny Musovski was also recognized, earning second team honors.
Bjornethun also earned First Team honors from Top Drawer Soccer. Olsen was a Second Team selection in the TDS Preseason Best XI while Musovski and Utah Valley's Alex Neff earned third team honors. Grand Canyon defender Hector Montalvo rounded out the WAC players honored, being named to the Freshman First Team.
PLAYING THE BEST
The WAC has eight non-conference games against participants from the 2015 NCAA Men's Soccer Tournament. Seattle U is playing two postseason participants, traveling to both Akron and Dartmouth. San José State is also taking on two postseason schools on the road, traveling to defending champion Stanford and Santa Clara. UIW will tak on SMU, Air Force meets Cal Poly, UT Rio Grande Valley plays Cal State Fullerton and UMKC heads to Creighton.
COMING TO YOU LIVE
The WAC Digital Network will broadcast 28 regular season games and all five games of the 2016 WAC Men's Soccer Tournament in Orem, Utah.