Five From Men's Soccer Honored With USC All-East Region Accolades
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (12/8/22) – Prior to claiming their second national title in program history, a group of men's soccer players were selected as All-East Region honorees by United Soccer Coaches (USC) back on November 23rd. From a total list of five, sophomore Braudilio Rodrigues (Lisbon, Portugal), junior Vicente Valor Martinez (San Juan, Spain), and seniors Aitor Aguado (Getxo, Spain) and Kosta Maniatis (Montreal, Quebec) were all named to the All-East Region First Team. Graduate Jonas Cervera Anchel (Chiva, Spain) rounded out the list of Ravens, receiving Second Team honors for the region.
Only two Ravens listed have received All-Region honors from USC prior to this season, with both Rodrigues and Maniatis claiming First Team accolades last season as well.
Rodrigues' name was heard frequently in NCAA DII men's soccer discussion, with the second year sensation completing the fall season with 20 goals and 22 assists for a nation leading 62 points. Within the Northeast-10, Rodrigues led the conference in all offensive categories, and currently holds the program record for single game assists (5). So far, Rodrigues has reeled in a plethora of honors in his sophomore season, securing the NE10 conference's Player of the Year, alongside the DII Conference Commissioners Association (D2CCA) East-Region Player of the Year, and the D2CCA Rob Lenz National Player of the Year.
Vicente Valor Martinez, in his third season with the program, made his mark in the offensive books for Franklin Pierce this fall. As a starter in all 26 games, the Raven midfielder posted 21 points on the field, accompanying five goals with a team third-best 11 assists. Additionally, Valor Martinez also attempted the second most shots on the team (33), second only to Braudilio Rodrigues. Entering the recent round of awards, Valor Martinez was honored with First Team accolades from the NE10 conference, as well as D2CCA All-East Region and All-America.
Along with Valor Martinez, Aitor Aguado was one of three Raven players to start in each of their 26 contests this fall. The Raven defender served as a leading force on the Raven backline, helping the team to the nations second-best goals against average (.346), along with a new program record 19 shutouts. Aguado, for his performance this fall, received NE10 All-Conference First Team, NE10 Defensive Player of the Year, D2CCA All-East Region First Team, and D2CCA All-America First Team honors.
Goalkeeper Kosta Maniatis found himself in goal often this season for Franklin Pierce, totaling 1596:08 minutes played during which time he posted a near-perfect 17-0-1 record with 12 shutouts, turning away 18-of-24 total shots faced versus opponents. As the NE10 Conference's Goalkeeper of the Year, Maniatis also garnered First Team honors from the D2CCA for the East Region, as well as Second Team as an All-America selection.
Jonas Cervera Anchel entered his third season with the program in 2022, and delivered on a consistent basis for the Ravens. In all 26 starts this season, Cervera Anchel nearly doubled his point totals with a career-high 30 points (7G, 16A). His 16 total assists ranked in the top five nationally, one of which came on the game winning goal in the national title contest for Pierce. For awards, Cervera Anchel collected First Team honors from both the NE10 Conference and the D2CCA.
The legendary season for Men's Soccer came to its fruition on December 3rd , with the program claiming Division II's top prize over No.2 Colorado State-Pueblo, 2-1.