Dec. 13, 2007
PENSACOLA, Fla. - The Men's Soccer team, which was ranked 3rd in the nation for much of the season, graduates a sensational senior class this year. Three of those seniors finished their careers by being honored as All-Region Selections. Defender Okang Nkosi, and forward Jimmy McHenry were named to the first team, along with junior goalkeeper Juan Garcia. Senior Midfielder Nick Mroczkowski earned second team nomination. The four Argonauts represented the most from any team in the region to earn the All-Region accolades.
Forward Jimmy McHenry finished the year with 45 points, including a team high 18 goals. McHenry was first in the Gulf South Conference in points per game with 2.32, and second in the GSC with six game winning goals this season. Defender Okang Nkosi has been the backbone of the Argonaut defense, and played an outstanding 1482 minutes this season. Midfielder Nick Mroczkowski was all over the field for the Argonauts this season, and helps both offensively and defensively. Playing the crucial position of midfielder, Mroczkowski helped solidify the defense, while also scoring one goal, and assisting on four others.
Meanwhile, Goalkeeper Juan Garcia recorded eight shutouts this season, and combined on three others with David McNally. Garcia led the GSC in goals against average, and save percentage. The four All-Region honorees played a big role in an outstanding 18 match win streak this season that set a new UWF record. The Argonauts did not lose a match between September 1st and November 8th, in what turned out to be a spectacular run by the nations 3rd ranked team.
Head Coach Bill Elliott was proud of his players being selected, "It was good to see them get recognized, they are all very deserving, and I wouldn't be surprised if we have a few more post season awards when the coaches selections come out later this week." Elliott was most happy for Nick (Mroczkowski) and Okang (Nkosi), since they play positions that are often overlooked. "Okang was the leader of our defense for several years, and in my opinion, the best defender in the region, and we are going to miss him greatly. Ski (Mroczkowski) does all the organizing, the dirty work that a lot of players don't want to do, and he does it well and was very important for our team. With Juan (Carlos) and Jimmy (McHenry), you can just look at the stats and see how good they are, and yes they are great at what they do."
For the second year in a row, the Gulf South Conference placed at least seven members and the Player of the Year, on the Daktronics NCAA Division II Men's Soccer All-South Region Team. In fact, the GSC comprised more than half of the Daktronics All-Region team for 2007.
Comprised of a First and Second Team of 11 members each, the Daktronics squad is in its second year of recognizing outstanding achievements in Division II Men's Soccer. In last season's inaugural team, four GSC players made First Team while three earned Second Team honors. This year, six league members each made the First and Second squads, including the South Region Player of the Year, Montevallo junior forward Jonathan Maloney. Maloney, the back-to-back GSC Player of the Year, makes his second straight appearance on the All-South First Team. Christian Brothers' midfielder Matt Werakso also earned his second consecutive First Team honor while Falcon forward Glenn Murphy was selected to another All-South Second Team.
Nine newcomers to the team included West Florida goalkeeper Juan Garcia, defender Okang Nkosi and forward Jimmy McHenry, all chosen to the First Team. Defender Adam Frazer of UM also debuted on the First Team. The Second Team contingent was comprised of Alabama-Huntsville defender Travis Morris and midfielder Daniel Wright, CBU defender Robert Mingo, UWF midfielder Nick Mroczkowski and Ouachita Baptist forward David Reyes. More awards are possible in the following days for the talented West Florida Argonauts and the strong Gulf South Conference.
