Joyce first in program to earn first team honors twice Thorpe first goalkeeper to earn honors in program history

RINDGE, N.H. (December 19, 2005) - Two members of the NCAA Division II runner-up Franklin Pierce men's soccer team received All-America honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).

Grad student Christopher Joyce (Jarrow, England) became the first two-time first team All-American honoree in program history and joins Jeff Bailey (1991-92), Bojan Vuckovic (1993-94) and Seamus Donnelly (1995-96) as two-time All-Americans in program history. Sophomore James Thorpe (East Longmeadow, Mass./Bridgton Academy) becomes the first goalkeeper in program history to earn All-America status with his selection to the third team. It marks the third-straight year the Ravens have had two All-America honorees.                   

Joyce, the Northeast-10 Conference Player of the Year, caps his career as the first two-time first team All-American in program history after also earning first team All-New England and first team All-Northeast-10 honors for two-straight years. He finished his final season at the College with an NCAA Division II best 67 points and 29 goals to go with an NE-10-leading nine assists.

In addition to his goal total leading the nation, the 29 markers matched the program's single-season record set by Vuckovic in 1992. Joyce also set a school-record with a Conference-leading eight match-winning goals, while his 67 points finished just four shy of Vuckovic's school record.

Joyce finished his two-year career at the College ranked fourth in program history with 51 goals, sixth with 119 points and 15^th with 17 assists in 50 career matches. He led the NE-10 in scoring and goals both years at the College and set an NCAA Division II Tournament record with nine career goals and finished with a Division II record-matching 20 career points in eight career NCAA Tournament matches played. Joyce was named the Most Outstanding Offensive Player in the NCAA Tournament New England Regional in 2004 and 2005 and was also selected to the All-Tournament team at the NCAA Division II Final Four this year.            

Thorpe, the two-time NE-10 Goalkeeper of the Year, receives his first All-America selection, also becoming the first goalkeeper in program history to earn the award. Thorpe is also a two-time first team All-New England and All-Northeast-10 selection as just a sophomore. He led the NE-10 for the second-straight year with 11 shutouts, while ranking second in the Conference with a 0.86 goals against average and third with a .788 save percentage over 2,307:14 in net.

Thorpe's goals against average this fall ranks second only to his own school-record 0.68 average set his freshman season. Thorpe has earned back-to-back Most Outstanding Defensive Player honors at the NCAA Tournament New England Regionals and was selected to the All-Tournament team at the NCAA Division II Final Four this season.

Thorpe, a converted forward from his days at the prep and high school levels, has already etched his name into the Franklin Pierce record books. In addition to setting single-season records for shutouts (14) and goals against average (0.68) as a freshman, he holds the two longest scoreless minute streaks in program history, including a record 578:52 string late in the year in 2004. Thorpe's 0.77 career goals against average is currently on pace to shatter the previous mark of 1.16, his 25 career shutouts are good second all-time, just two shy of the school-record, while his .806 career save percentage is also good for second all-time.

Thorpe has posted a 3-1 career record in penalty shootouts, winning his last three, including victories in the NE-10 Tournament semifinals and NCAA Quarterfinal rounds this fall.

Franklin Pierce (16-6-5, 10-1-2 NE-10) advanced to the National Championship match for the first time in program history before dropping a 3-1 decision to No. 1-ranked Fort Lewis (Colo.) College. The Ravens, ranked No. 2 in the final NSCAA/adidas Division II poll, reached the NCAA Division II Final Four for the second time in program history after claiming the Northeast-10 Conference regular season championship - their first Conference title since 1995.