Five Players Earn Men's Soccer All-Region Honors

MADISON, N.J. - The Landmark Conference placed five men's soccer players on the 2009 National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Region Team from the Mid-Atlantic Region which was announced early this month. The Landmark has placed at least five players on All-Region Teams each of its three seasons.

The NSCAA selects All-Region Teams for eight regions, with three 11-player teams per region. The Landmark had three first-team selections, one second-team pick and one third-team choice in the Mid-Atlantic Region.

USMMA's Kyle Kempinski and Clint Foster were both first-team choices, as was Catholic's Matt Brady. Drew defender John Jabar earned second team honors, while Scranton midfielder Ray Straccia was selected for the third team.

In his final season, Brady led the Cardinals to their first NCAA tournament appearance in school history. He started nearly every game this season, missing five midseason games due to injury. Brady was an offensive force all season, leading the Landmark Conference in goals with 12, points per game with a 0.74 average, shots with 74, and shots per game with 4.62.
Paskman is honored for the second straight year. He was a first-team All-Conference performer for the second-consecutive season while also earning All-Region honors for the second time.

Foster also earned All-Region accolades for the second time as he finished the season with a total of 30 points to lead the Landmark Conference. Foster also finished first in assists with eight, second in goals with 11 and had three game winning goals. For his efforts in the conference Foster was named Landmark Offensive Player of the Year and was a first-team All-Conference choice for the third time.

Kempinski earns All-Region honors for the first time in his senior season. On the season he recorded two goals and helped the Mariners defense that only allowed 15 goals. The Mariners defense also registered seven shutouts on the year. As a strong defender, Kempinski was named First Team All-Landmark for the season.

Jabar, also a senior defender, captured his first All-Region honors after a strong final campaign. He was voted the Landmark Defensive Player of the Year and earned All-Conference recognition for the second time, the first time as a first-team honoree. Jabar led the Ranger defense to the NCAA’s sixth best Team Goals Against Average (0.42) and fourth best Shutout Percentage (0.72). The Rangers allowed just two goals in Landmark games during the regular season with Jabar’s central defensive dominance a key factor.

Straccia earns All-Region honors for the first time following his senior season. Straccia finished with 17 total points (7 goals, 3 assists) to earn first-team all-Landmark Conference honors, making it the third time in his career that he earned all-conference honors. He scored three match-winning goals this past year, and for his career, Stracci started 57 of 69 matches and finished with 16 goals, including seven match-winning goals, and seven assists for 39 total points.

The Landmark sent two teams to the NCAA Tournament in men's soccer, the only fall sport in which two teams qualified for the NCAA field, and also had a team win an ECAC Postseason Championship.

Story provided by Catholic, Drew, Scranton & USMMA Sports Information