Point Loma won its first Pacific West Conference title in men's soccer in 2023 and hauled in a majority of the league's special awards as an added reward.
Phil Wolf is the Coach of the Year,
Milo Libby is the Defender of the Year,
Finn Simmersbach is the Goalkeeper of the Year and
Juan Salazar was chosen as Newcomer of the Year in a vote of the conference's coaches this week. The Sea Lions went 8-1-1 in conference play and are 12-4-1 overall heading into a Thursday NCAA Super Region 4 playoff contest against Simon Fraser in Los Angeles (6 pm).
Domincan's
Diego Grande was selected at the Player of the Year and Biola's
Luca McGreevey Couchman is the Freshman of the Year.
Phil Wolf is in his 12th season leading the Sea Lion program. It's his second PacWest Coach of the Year award (2020) and he has had eight straight winning campaigns. In 2017, Point Loma went 11-0-2 in PacWest play and qualified for its first-ever NCAA regional. This season, the Sea Lions led the conference in goals scored (41) and paced the PacWest in margin of victory (1.0). Prior to rebuilding the Point Loma program, he led Azusa Pacific to three NAIA title matches, winning the national championship in 2006. He now has a career mark of 225-102-41.
Player of the Year
Diego Grande had many days to remember this season, but one stands out for sure. On October 21, he scored four goals against Academy of Art, second highest total in PacWest history. It was the most any player in the conference had scored since 2017. The junior forward had only one goal through the first six matches of the season, but the 5-foot-7, 140-pounder got hot after that scoring 12 goals in his next 11 games. The Pacifica native led the PacWest in goals scored (13), points (27) and tied for game-winning goals with three.
Defender of the Year
Milo Libby helped lead a stout Point Loma defense that allowed just 1.41 goals per contest. The Sea Lions had eight shutouts on the season, including four straight heading into the playoffs. The 6-foot-5, 205-pounder started 14 of 15 matches this season and ten times played all 90 minutes for the Sea Lions. A First Team All-PacWest pick this year as a junior and a Second Team selection in 2022 as a sophomore, the El Dorado native transferred to Point Loma last year from Gonzaga.
Libby played right in front of Point Loma's
Finn Simmersbach, the PacWest Goalkeeper of the Year. Simmersbach (6-2, 180) gave up just two goals over his final six starts which included four shutouts. He started nine matches for the Sea Lions and had 25 saves. His 1.44 Goals Against Average is misleading when you tie in the fact that he gave up an ample amout of scores in his first three matches, but was nails down the stretch. The Waimea, Hawai`i native, like Libby, is a transfer from Gonzaga.
Newcomer of the Year
Juan Salazar is a grad transfer from Cal State San Marcos that made a huge difference in the Sea Lion line-up this season. Salazar (6-1, 185) scored eight goals and had seven assists, leading the PacWest in the latter category and placing third in goals scored. His 23 points (1.35 per match) is third in the conference. The native of Colombia scored or had an assist in ten of Point Loma's 17 matches, and he had two goals and a assist in a win over Academy of Art.
The Freshman of the Year in 2023 is Biola's
Luca McGreevey Couchman. The Belfast, Northern Ireland native scored two goals off the bench in just his second collegiate contest (vs. Life Pacific) and was starting by game four. He scored three times against Hawai`i Pacific and totaled eight goals on the season, tied for the third highest total in the PacWest in just 12 contests.
Joining Grande, LIbby, Simmersbach and Salazar on the All-PacWest First Team are Point Loma's
Felix Calero (D),
Milan Diklic (F), and
Marlon Buck (MF). Dominican's
Lex Bernier (F) and
Louis Galdamez (D) are on the squad, along with Hawai`i Pacific's
Leandro Weingartner (MF), Hawai`i Hilo's
Koki Hamada (D), Concordia's
Anthony Morales, and Westmont's
Landon Amaral (D).
LIbby, Weingartner, Morales, Galdamez, Hamada and Diklic are all repeat selections. Azusa Pacific's
Fritz Oestreicher, a Second Team selection, was named to an All-PacWest team for the third time.
| 2023 PACWEST MEN’S SOCCER AWARDS |
| PLAYER OF THE YEAR |
DEFENDER OF THE YEAR |
GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR |
| Diego Grande, Dominican |
Milo Libby, Point Loma |
Finn Simmersbach, Point Loma |
| NEWCOMER OF THE YEAR |
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR |
COACH OF THE YEAR |
| Juan Salazar, Point Loma |
Luca McGreevey Couchman, Biola |
Phil Wolf, Point Loma |
| 2023 ALL-PACWEST MEN’S SOCCER TEAM |
| Name |
School |
Pos. |
Yr. |
Hometown/Previous School |
| FIRST TEAM |
| Diego Grande |
Dominican |
F |
Jr. |
Pacifica, Calif. / Sacred Heart Cathedral |
| Juan Salazar |
Point Loma |
F |
Gr. |
Medellin, Columbia / CS San Marcos |
| Felix Calero |
Point Loma |
F |
Jr. |
San Diego / St. Mary’s |
| Lex Bernier |
Dominican |
F |
Jr. |
Poway, Calif. / Rancho Bernardo HS |
| Milan Diklic* |
Point Loma |
MF |
Sr. |
Meyzieu, France / Northeastern JC |
| Leandro Weingartner* |
Hawai`i Pacific |
MF |
Sr. |
Ober-Moerlen, Germany / Ernst-Ludwig-Schule |
| Anthony Morales* |
Concordia |
MF |
So. |
Orange, Calif. / Villa Park HS |
| Marlon Buck |
Point Loma |
MF |
Gr. |
Vienna, Austria / Barry Univ. |
| Milo Libby* |
Point Loma |
D |
Jr. |
El Dorado Hills, Calif. / Gonzaga |
| Louie Galdamez* |
Dominican |
D |
Sr. |
San Jose, Calif. / Santa Teresa |
| Landon Amaral |
Westmont |
D |
Sr. |
Agoura Hills, Calif. / Agoura Hills HS |
| Koki Hamada* |
Hawai`i Hilo |
D |
So. |
Kita, Toyko, Japan / High Mowing School |
| Finn Simmersbach |
Point Loma |
GK |
Sr. |
Waimea, Hawai`i / Gonzaga |
| SECOND TEAM |
| Braeden Pryor |
Westmont |
F |
Sr. |
Tacoma, Wash. / Stadium HS |
| Gilly Miller* |
Academy of Art |
F |
Sr. |
Hackney, London / East Tennessee State. |
| Kevin Sanchez |
Concordia |
F |
So. |
Irvine, Calif. / Servite HS |
| Luca McGreevey Couchman |
Biola |
F |
Fr. |
Belfast, Northern Ireland / Royal Belfast Academical Institution |
| Ethan Hardin* |
Biola |
MF |
So. |
West Palm Beach, Fla. / Forest Hills Community |
| Mario Shuteriqi |
Azusa Pacific |
MF |
Fr. |
Frankfurt, Germany / Ziehenschule |
| Joey Glaab |
Academy of Art |
MF |
Fr. |
Chandler, Ariz. / Hamilton HS |
| Daniel Tuscano |
Westmont |
MF |
Sr. |
San Clemente, Calif. / San Clemente HS |
| Colby Lee |
Hawai`i Hilo |
D |
Jr. |
Ogden, Utah / Utah State Eastern |
| Kupa`a Fernandez |
Point Loma |
D |
Gr. |
Kailua-Kona, Hawai`I / Gonzaga |
| Matthew Abangan |
Point Loma |
D |
Gr. |
Glendora, Calif. / Glendora HS |
| Fritz Oestreicher** |
Azusa Pacific |
D |
Jr. |
Frankfurt, Germany / San Diego State |
| Christian Souza |
Hawai`i Hilo |
GK |
Sr. |
Kapolei, Hawai`i / Damien Memorial |
| THIRD TEAM |
| Chris Macias |
Fresno Pacific |
F |
So. |
Lindsay, Calif. / Lindsay HS |
| Gabriel Oropeza |
Azusa Pacific |
F |
Jr. |
Wilmington, Calif. / Cerritos JC |
| Austin Lavell* |
Point Loma |
F |
Jr. |
Trabuco Canyon, Calif. / Santa Margarita HS |
| Leonel Olivio Ortiz |
Westmont |
F |
Fr. |
Santa Barbara, Calif. / San Marcos HS |
| Gael Ruiz |
Point Loma |
MF |
Jr. |
Chula Vista, Calif. / San Diego Christian |
| Andrew Rehedul |
Hawai`i Hilo |
MF |
Sr. |
El Paso, Tex. / Chapin HS |
| Armando Jimenez |
Dominican |
MF |
Jr. |
Sacramento, Calif. / Folsom Lake CC |
| Tyler Oakson |
Concordia |
MF |
Sr. |
Mission Viejo, Calif. / Southern Methodist |
| Barrett Goodman |
Westmont |
D |
Fr. |
Santa Barbara, Calif. / Western Washington |
| Tom Irion |
Biola |
D |
Gr. |
Stuttgart, Germany / Central Methodist |
| Juancarlos Rodriguez |
Azusa Pacific |
D |
Jr. |
Altaloma, Calif. / CS San Bernardino |
| Wyatt Burris |
Concordia |
D |
Gr. |
Huntington Beach, Calif. / Edison HS |
| Alejandro Reyes |
Dominican |
GK |
Gr. |
Elk Grove, Calif. / Laguna Creek HS |
* - Indicates number of previous All-PacWest selections