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University of Massachusets Athletics
Men's Soccer Names Team Award Winners
December 29, 2003 | Men's Soccer
Dec. 29, 2003
AMHERST, Mass. - The University of Massachusetts' men's soccer team announced its team award winners at its annual team banquet. The Minutemen finished the season 11-7-1 and 5-5-1 in the Atlantic 10 Conference. It was the fifth straight season with double-digit wins under Head Coach Sam Koch.
Senior Devlin Barnes (Bethesda, Md.) was named the Team MVP and Defensive MVP. He appeared in 17 games on the season, registering five shots on goal. However, he led a defense that posted seven shutouts in 19 games, and allowed a mere 24 goals, the fourth fewest in Sam Koch's 13 years at the helm. Barnes was named second team All-Atlantic 10 this past season.
Senior Ptah Myers (Columbus, Ohio) earned Offensive MVP honors after leading UMass with 21 points and nine goals. Myers was named to the Atlantic 10's All-Conference first team for the first time this past season and second time overall. He finished his career with 70 points (27 g, 16 a) to rank seventh on the all-time scoring list, tied for ninth on the career goals scored list and tied for ninth on the career assists list. He scored at least 20 points in the last three years. Myers was also named an All-New England second-team selection by the NSCAA / adidas All-America committee.
Freshmen Rob Charest (Monson, Mass.) and Ralph Pace (Richmond, Va.) shared the 12th Man Award. Charest appeared in 17 games with two starts and contributed three points (1 g, 1 a) with 14 shots. Pace appeared in 17 games with five starts and scored six points (1 g, 4 a). The four assists ranked tied for second the team.
Goalie Nick Billman (St. Louis, Mo.) won the team's Rookie of the Year award after a stellar freshman season. Billman posted a 5-1-0 record with a 0.90 GAA and a save percentage of .800. The GAA was second all-time in UMass history to Mark Hodgdon's 0.77 GAA in 1977, and he finished the season with three shutouts in six games, only only seven goals all season.
Senior Andrew Eicher (Billerica, Mass.) won the team's Daniels-Strathairn Award after being named a captain and for his leadership on and off the field. Eicher played in all 19 games, starting every one of them. He scored five points (2 g, 1 a) on the season. For his career, Eicher played in a school-record 81 games, starting 78 of them, playing in every game in his UMass career.