From Brandeis University Athletics
Brandeis University senior forward Tyler Savonen of Orleans, Mass., and junior defender Conor Lanahan of Avon, Conn., have added to their postseason awards haul. Savonen was named the Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) Division III New England Offensive Player of the Year, while Lanahan was named ECAC Co-Defensive Player of the Year. Both were also named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of American (NSCAA) Division III Scholar All-America first team.
Savonen and Lanahan were previously selected as NSCAA All-Americans and CoSIDA Academic All-District selections, with Savonen taking home CoSIDA Academic All-America honors as well.
Savonen became the fourth player in school history named MVP of the University Athletic Association. He finished second in the conference in goals (9) and points (21) this season. He scored three game-winning goals, fifth-most in the UAA, including a pair in conference games. Savonen finished his career ranked eighth on the Judges' career scoring list with 87 points and seventh with 35 goals. He was also named a CoSIDA Academic All-American earlier this year. Savonen owns a 3.60 grade-point average as an economics and business double major. He is vice president of Brandeis's Student-Athlete Advisory Committee and has been named to the Dean's List every semester and the Academic All-UAA team three times.
Lanahan anchored a Judge defense that finished third in NCAA Division III with a school-record 0.38 goals-against average. The Judges allowed just nine goals in 23 contests and set another school record with 17 shutouts. Lanahan added a goal and an assist on the offensive end of the field. He was named UAA Defensive Player of the Week once during the season. Owning a 3.41 grade-point average in biochemistry, Lanahan has been named to the Dean's List once and the Academic All-UAA team twice.
Three other Judges were honored by the ECAC and the NSCAA. Senior goalkeeper Joe Graffy of Concord, N.H., was selected as an ECAC First-Team All-New England goalkeeper and an NSCAA honorable mention All-East Region Academic team member. Sophomore midfielder Josh Ocel of No. Attleboro, Mass., added first-team All-ECAC honors as well, while junior midfielder Jake Picard of Suffield, Conn., was an NSCAA Scholar All-Region honorable mention choice.
Graffy, a first-team All-UAA goalie, set school records with an 0.39 goals-allowed average and 15 shutouts. He led the UAA in both categories and ranked second in Division III in shutout percentage, fourth in GAA and 11th in save percentage (0.873). Off the field, he owned a 3.34 grade-point average as a Health: Science, Society and Policy major. He was a three-time Academic All-UAA selection who spent last summer conducting reproductive immunology research at Brown University.
Ocel and Picard held down the Brandeis midfield. Ocel was the team's and the UAA's top play-maker, finishing with nine assists, while his 17 points were tied for sixth in the league. He ranked 44th in Division III in total assists, eighth in New England. He also had four goals to finish with 17 points, tied for sixth in the UAA. Ocel picked up a key assist in the Judges' 1-0 win over Bowdoin in the second round of the NCAA tournament on No. 16.
Picard was a defensive force in the air. He also scored a game-winning goal on Sept. 24 against Babson and added two more in Brandeis's NCAA Tournament-opening win over Husson University. With a 3.67 GPA in Health: Science, Society and Policy, Picard is a two-time Academic All-UAA and three-time Dean's List student.
Brandeis finished 2014 with a 19-3-1 record, tying the school record for wins in a season. The Judges reached the Elite Eight of the NCAA Division III tournament with wins over Husson (3-0) and Bowdoin (1-0) at home, and a penalty-kick shootout against Amherst in the Sweet 16 (0-0, 6-5 PKs) before falling to Oneonta State in the Elite Eight. They were also one of only two teams to defeat eventual national champions Tufts University during the regular season, handing the Jumbos a 2-0 defeat on Sept. 20. In Coven's 42nd season, the Judges were ranked No. 6 in the final NSCAA Division III poll.