Men's Soccer

MIAC announces 2022 Men’s Soccer Awards

BLOOMINGTON, Minn. – The Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) announced its annual men’s soccer awards on Wednesday.

St. Olaf sophomore forward Shea Bechtel was selected by conference coaches as the MIAC Offensive Player of the Year, while Gustavus senior goalkeeper Wesley Sanders earned MIAC Defensive Player of the Year honors, and St. Olaf first-year midfielder Robi Buzakovic was named MIAC Rookie of the Year. Gustie head coach Tudor Flintham was celebrated by his peers as the MIAC Coach of the Year.

Bechtel (So. | Plainfield, Ill. | North) earned MIAC Offensive Player of the Year honors after scoring four goals and assisting on a conference-best nine in 2022. The 2021 MIAC Rookie of the Year took 28 shots in conference play during his sophomore campaign and averaged 1.89 points per MIAC contest in 2022. He is the first Ole to win MIAC Offensive Player of the Year honors for men’s soccer.

Sanders (Sr. | Urbandale, Iowa | Waukee) received MIAC Defensive Player of the Year accolades after leading the conference in goals allowed (2), save percentage (0.929), and shutouts (7) in 2022. His seven shutouts in league play this season are the fifth-most by any goalkeeper in MIAC men’s soccer history. Sanders is the second Gustie to receive MIAC Defensive Player of the Year honors in as many seasons, joining teammate and 2021 recipient, defender Jared Hecht.

Buzakovic (Fy. | Fargo, N.D. | Shattuck-St. Mary’s) received MIAC Rookie of the Year honors after starting all ten conference games for the Oles in 2022. Buzakovic scored two goals and assisted on two others in his debut season. He is the second consecutive Ole to receive the award, joining teammate and 2021 recipient, forward Shea Bechtel.

Flintham (fourth season) was recognized by his peers as MIAC Coach of the Year for the second time in his career after guiding Gustavus to its 17th regular season conference championship in program history. Gustavus allowed just three goals in conference play en route to an unbeaten 9-0-1 record in MIAC games. Flintham previously received MIAC Coach of the Year honors in 2018. He is the third Gustavus coach to be honored with the award, alongside Larry Zelenz (1989, 1994, 2000, 2003) and Mike Middleton (2013).

In addition to the individual awards, 22 players were named All-Conference and seven received honorable mention distinction. All awards were nominated by and voted on by the eleven MIAC head men’s soccer coaches; any nominated player not selected as All-Conference but still receiving votes from at least three coaches was named honorable mention.

Nine of the 22 All-Conference selections were also selected in 2021, while five were honorable mention recipients a season ago.
2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Awards
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Year
Position Name Institution Class Hometown | High School Previous Selections
F Shea Bechtel St. Olaf So. Plainfield, Ill. | North --
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Defensive Player of the Year
Position Name Institution Class Hometown | High School Previous Selections
GK Wesley Sanders Gustavus Sr. Urbandale, Iowa | Waukee --
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Rookie of the Year
Position Name Institution Class Hometown | High School
M Robi Buzakovic St. Olaf Fy. Fargo, N.D. | Shattuck-St. Mary’s
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Coach of the Year
Name Institution Previous Selections
Tudor Flintham Gustavus 2018
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer All-Conference
Position Name Institution Class Hometown | High School Previous Selections
D Otis Anderson Gustavus Jr. Minneapolis, Minn. | Washburn 2021
F Shea Bechtel St. Olaf So. Plainfield, Ill. | North 2021
M Robi Buzakovic St. Olaf Fy. Fargo, N.D. | Shattuck-St. Mary’s --
F Matthias Caspari Bethel Sr. Bloomington, Minn. | Jefferson 2021 (HM)
M Keegan Chastey St. Scholastica So. Duluth, Minn. | Denfeld --
D Drew Collins Augsburg Jr. Champlin, Minn. | Champlin Park 2021 (HM)
F Thomas Dono Macalester Sr. Plymouth, Mich. | Salem 2021 (HM)
M Victor Gaulmin St. Olaf Jr. Brest, Finistere, France | University of Western Brittany 2021
F Hans Haenicke Macalester So. Lisle, Ill. | Benet Academy 2021
D Jared Hecht Gustavus So. Apple Valley, Minn. | Eastview 2021
M Owen Johnson Gustavus Jr. Apple Valley, Minn. | Eastview 2021 (HM)
M Trevor Jones Carleton Sr. Urbandale, Iowa | Waukee --
D Riaz Kelly Carleton Jr. St. Paul, Minn. | Central --
D Nick Kent Macalester Fy. Minneapolis, Minn. | St. Louis Park --
M Casey McCloskey St. Olaf Jr. Denver, Colo. | Regis Jesuit 2021
GK Wesley Sanders Gustavus Sr. Urbandale, Iowa | Waukee 2019
F Branko Sciortino Macalester Jr. Los Altos, Calif. | Bellermine College Prep  
GK Evan Siefken Saint John’s So. Lakeville, Minn. | North 2021 (HM)
D Ryan Swanda Bethel Fy. Edina, Minn. --
M Telvin Vah Concordia Sr. West Fargo, N.D. 2021
F Logan Weller Hamline Sr. Prior Lake, Minn. 2019 | 2021
M Nick Zuchowski Augsburg Sr. Wales, Wis. | Kettle Moraine 2019 (HM) | 2021
 2022 MIAC Men’s Soccer Honorable Mention
Position Name Institution Class Hometown | High School Previous Selections
D Aidan Becken Saint John’s Sr. Prior Lake, Minn. 2021 (HM)
M Robert Cooper Hamline Sr. Madison, Wis. | West 2021 (HM)
M Alex Giles Augsburg Sr. Columbia Heights, Minn. --
M Sam Just Gustavus Jr. Lakeville, Minn. | South 2021 (HM)
M Clemente Arcuch Puig St. Olaf Jr. Santiago, Chile | Northfield Mount Hermon School --
GK Daniel Sessler Saint Mary’s Jr. Brookfield, Ill. | Riverside 2021 (AC)
D Jonathan Vonderlage Carleton Fy. Seattle, Wash. | Lakeside --