The Oglethorpe men's soccer team saw accolades continue to roll in Monday morning after winning their second SAA championship on Sunday, as the SAA's coaches voted nine Stormy Petrels onto the All-SAA teams. In addition, junior midfielder Topher Marshall earned SAA Offensive Player of the Year, senior defender Jordan Locke took home SAA Defensive Player of the Year, and Oglethorpe head coach Jon Akin won SAA Coach of the Year honors. It marked the second consecutive season in which the Petrels took three of four postseason awards and put nine on the All-SAA teams.
In addition to Marshall and Locke, both of whom also slotted into the All-SAA First Team, senior goalkeeper Luke Whelan and junior forward Ryan Marcano both earned All-SAA First Team selections. Sophomore defender Christian Waegelin, sophomore midfielder Andrew Grodhaus, junior forward Devon Patterson and sophomore forward Gabriel Alvarez all garnered inclusion on the All-SAA Second Team. Meanwhile, senior defender Josh Hoeft earned All-SAA Honorable Mention.
Marshall earned his second consecutive SAA Offensive Player of the Year honor and his third consecutive spot on the All-SAA First Team. He finished his SAA season atop the league leaderboard in a slew of categories, including goals (14), points (32), shots (66), game-winning goals (4, T-1st) and games played (19, T-1st). He was outstanding in a 2-1 win over Berry on Oct. 20 that clinched his team's third consecutive SAA regular season title, scoring a pair of goals to facilitate a second-half comeback en route to the victory. He also earned SAA Offensive Player of the Week honors on Oct. 16, tallying three goals and an assist in wins over Millsaps and Birmingham-Southern.
Locke takes his first SAA postseason award and his third All-SAA First Team honor in as many seasons. He anchored Oglethorpe's stout defensive unit this season. It was a group that allowed a league-best 0.78 goals against average (GAA) and allowed a conference-low 15 goals on the season. He was named to the SAA All-Tournament Team off his outstanding effort in the team's 2-1 final victory over Centre and their 2-1 semifinal victory in overtime over Berry. Locke has been an essential part of the stout defenses put up by all three SAA title-winning teams over the past three seasons.
Akin earns his third consecutive SAA Coach of the Year nod and his sixth overall conference coach of the year award dating back to the program's time in the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference (SCAC). He's now led his teams to three consecutive SAA regular season titles, compiling a combined league record of 17-1-2 during that time. He's also led his teams to three conference championships, winning SAA titles with this year's squad and in 2013, and taking the 2011 SCAC title. Prior to this season, he took SAA Coach of the Year honors in 2016, 2015 and 2013, and garnered SCAC coaching honors in 2011 and 2004. He just completed his 15th season at the helm of the Oglethorpe men's soccer program, and has compiled a record of 143-105-21. He'll lead a Stormy Petrel squad to the NCAA Division III tournament for the second time in their history this weekend.
Whelan earned his second consecutive All-SAA nod and his first career All-SAA First Team accolade as the best goalkeeper in the conference. He currently leads the league in GAA (0.65), fewest goals allowed (10) and wins (14). He's also second in the league in save percentage (.792) and fifth in shutouts (4 full-game, 1 partial-game). He garnered SAA Defensive Player of the Week accolades twice this season, taking the honor on Sept. 11 after recording consecutive shutouts in a pair of victories over St. Mary's (Maryland) and Salisbury at the Seahawk Classic in St. Mary's City, and earning it again on Oct. 9 for his efforts in the team's 3-0 week against nationally-ranked Washington (Missouri), Hendrix and Rhodes.
Marcano earned his first career All-SAA honor in his first season with the Petrels. He's currently near the top of the SAA leaderboard in a large number of categories, including goals (2nd, 12), points (2nd, 30), game-winning goals (T-3rd, 3) and assists (T-5th, 6). He earned SAA Tournament MVP honors over the weekend for his efforts in helping to earn the team's second SAA title, scoring opening goals in both the championship game and semifinal. He also tallied a pair of assists in the Petrels' 5-1 quarterfinal victory over Hendrix on Oct. 28. He earned SAA Offensive Player of the Week honors on Sept. 11 after scoring two goals and tallying an assist for five total points at the Seahawk Classic.
Waegelin earns his first career All-SAA nod after another outstanding season as part of Oglethorpe's stout back line. He's been a part of consecutive SAA regular season title teams and will now head to the NCAA tournament for the first time with the Stormy Petrels this season. In addition to his defensive duties, he also tallied an assist in the team's 3-1 neutral-site win over Roanoke in Pineville, North Carolina.
He's joined on the All-SAA Second Team by Grodhaus, who earns his second consecutive All-SAA honor after taking All-SAA Honorable Mention in 2016. His work at defensive midfield has proved invaluable toward the team's excellent defensive record, and he's also gotten forward into the attack at times, currently standing tied for 11th in the conference with four assists on the season. The most important of those helped score the team's lone goal in their 1-0 win at Rhodes.
Patterson earned his second consecutive All-SAA accolade after taking All-SAA Honorable Mention in 2016. This season, he proved to be an excellent target forward, using his hold-up play to bag six assists on the year, a mark which ties him for fifth in the league. He also has scored six goals, putting him at 18 total points and a fifth-place tie in that category, as well. His three game-winning goals tie him for third in the league, and one of them secured the team the SAA championship in the 2-1 conference final win over Centre on Sunday.
Alvarez earned his second consecutive All-SAA Second Team nod, scoring six goals and passing out four assists to put him in the league's top 10 with 10 total points. He also finished first in the league with a pair of penalty-kick goals, and did not miss a penalty kick over the course of the season. His three game-winning goals also put him tied for third in the league, and he scored one of the most dramatic goals in program history with his golden goal late in the first period of overtime in the team's 2-1 SAA semifinal win over Berry on Friday.
Hoeft will finish his Oglethorpe career with a pair of All-SAA nods after taking All-SAA Second Team honors in 2016. This season, he gets to go out with a conference championship and a trip to the NCAA tournament. He continued his outstanding work at the fullback position over the course of the season, providing excellent delivery from the flanks in addition to his tireless defensive effort. He currently has three assists and scored the game-winning goal in the team's 3-1 victory over crosstown rival Emory on Oct. 18.
"I'm very proud of all of our SAA honorees," said Oglethorpe head coach Jon Akin. "We've already accomplished a great deal this season, and we're far from finished. We've gotten outstanding year-long performances from a bunch of guys, as evidenced by the fact that we put nine players on the All-SAA teams. The All-SAA teams signify the best in the conference over the course of the season as voted by the league's coaches, so it says a lot about our guys that we put that many on the list and took three of a possible four postseason awards."
The Petrels will now get set to head to the NCAA Division III tournament this weekend after winning the SAA's automatic bid on Sunday. They'll learn where they're headed Monday afternoon at 1:30 p.m. when the tournament field is selected during the NCAA Division III Men's Soccer Selection Show on NCAA.com.
