HADLEY, Mass. – The New England Small College Athletic Conference announced it men’s soccer awards on Wednesday.
Amherst senior forward Ada Okorogheye was named the NESCAC Player of the Year, Middlebury senior Ryan Grady was selected as the Defensive Player of the Year, and Amherst’s Mohammed Nuhu was voted as the conference’s Rookie of the Year. The Middlebury staff was named the Coaching Staff of the Year by their peers.
Okorogheye is the third Amherst player and second in four years to be named NESCAC Player of the Year. Okorogheye ranks second on the Mammoths in scoring with 16 points on six goals, including two game-winners, and four assists. Okorogheye, who also earned his third straight All-NESCAC First Team accolade, helped Amherst repeat as NESCAC Champion and win its seventh title in program history. The Mammoths, who earned an automatic bid to the NCAA Tournament, will travel to WPI for a first-round match against SUNY Poly.
Grady is the winner of the inaugural Defensive Player of the Year award which has been implemented for men’s soccer in 2023. Grady helped Middlebury clinch the No. 1 seed in the NESCAC Men’s Soccer Championship with an unbeaten record of 11-0-4 during the regular season and an unblemished 7-0-3 conference mark. Grady, the 2019 NESCAC Rookie of the Year, has allowed a league-low 10 goals all season and leads the conference with a 0.59 goals against average, a .853 save percentage, and 10 shutouts. The Panthers will host the first two rounds of NCAA matches on November 11-12. Middlebury will face Western New England in its opening match.
Nuhu is the sixth Amherst player to be named NESCAC Rookie of the Year. The first year leads Amherst in scoring with 18 points, scoring a team-high seven goals and adding four assists. In the 54th minute of the NESCAC Championship game, Nuhu’s lofted shot found the back of the net to lift the Mammoths past Tufts, 1-0, allowing Amherst to repeat as conference champion. Nuhu enters the NCAA Tournament having recorded at least one point in six straight matches.
The Middlebury coaches were voted as the NESCAC Coaching Staff of the Year by their peers. It marks the third time in the award’s history Panther coaches have been honored. Under the direction of head coach Alex Elias, Middlebury went unbeaten in the regular season (11-0-4), becoming the first Panther squad to achieve the feat since 1989. Middlebury also earned the No. 1 seed in the NESCAC Championship with a perfect 7-0-3 record in conference play and are making their sixth straight NCAA appearance and 16th overall.
2023 Men's Soccer All-NESCAC Awards
Player of the Year: Ada Okorogheye, Amherst
Defensive Player of the Year: Ryan Grady, Middlebury
Rookie of the Year: Mohammed Nuhu, Amherst
Coaching Staff of the Year: Middlebury College
| All-NESCAC First Team |
| Pos-Name |
School |
Yr |
Hometown |
Previous Honors |
| G - Ryan Grady |
Middlebury |
Sr. |
Deerfield, Ill. |
2021 1st Team, 2019 ROY, 2019 2nd Team |
| D - Ben Clark-Eden |
Amherst |
Jr. |
Littlehampton, England |
2022 2nd Team |
| D - Max Clivio |
Tufts |
Sr. |
Kingston, Jamaica |
|
| D - Luke Madden |
Middlebury |
Jr. |
Manhattan Beach, Calif. |
|
| D - Evan O'Brien |
Wesleyan |
Sr. |
Montclair, N.J. |
2022 2nd Team |
| D - William O'Brien |
Middlebury |
Jr. |
Norton, Mass. |
|
| M - Ignacio Cubeddu |
Amherst |
Jr. |
Davie, Fla. |
|
| M - James Donaldson |
Trinity |
Sr. |
Kirkland, Quebec |
|
| M - Tyler Huck |
Bowdoin |
So. |
Ross, Calif. |
2022 ROY |
| M - Julian Juantorena |
Bowdoin |
Sr. |
Brooklyn, N.Y. |
2022 1st Team, 2021 2nd Team |
| M - Luke Peplowski |
Hamilton |
Jr. |
Pittsfield, Mass. |
2022 2nd Team |
| F - Mohammed Nuhu |
Amherst |
Fy. |
Accra, Ghana |
|
| F - Ada Okorogheye |
Amherst |
Sr. |
London, England |
2022 1st Team, 2021 2nd Team |
| F - Felipe Rueda Duran |
Bowdoin |
So. |
Beaverton, Ore. |
|
| F - Jordan Saint-Louis |
Middlebury |
Sr. |
Potomac, Md. |
2022 2nd Team, 2021 2nd Team |
| F - Matt Scoffone |
Conn. College |
Sr. |
Thornton, Pa. |
|
| All-NESCAC Second Team |
| Pos-Name |
School |
Yr |
Hometown |
Previous Honors |
| G - Peter Silvester |
Conn. College |
Jr. |
Smiths Parish, Bermuda |
|
| D - Marco Cerezo |
Conn. College |
Sr. |
Malaga, Spain |
|
| D - Eamon Gara Grady |
Williams |
Sr. |
Manchester, Conn. |
|
| D - Jack Selig |
Bowdoin |
Sr. |
Benton, Ark. |
|
| D - Carlton Steinberg |
Bowdoin |
Sr. |
Westborough, Mass. |
|
| M - Eduard Casanova |
Colby |
So. |
Barcelona, Spain |
|
| M - Eujin Chae |
Middlebury |
Jr. |
South Korea |
|
| M - Jake Creus |
Conn. College |
Sr. |
Rye, N.Y. |
|
| M - Kyle Nilsson |
Middlebury |
Jr. |
San Francisco, Calif. |
|
| M - Daniel Yanez |
Tufts |
So. |
Short Hills, N.J. |
|
| F - Tife Agunloye |
Bates |
Jr. |
Monroe, Conn. |
2022 1st Team |
| F - Gavin Randolph |
Middlebury |
So. |
Boston, Mass. |
|
| F - Lucas Ruehlemann |
Wesleyan |
Jr. |
Waldwick, N.J. |
2021 2nd Team |
| F - Sean Traynor |
Tufts |
Sr. |
Rye, N.Y. |
|
