Central Islip, N.Y. – After finishing the regular season in first and second place respectively, members of the LIU Post Pioneers and Molloy Lions men’s soccer teams were awarded with the East Coast Conference's All-Conference top honors. LIU Post sophomore forward Charlie Ledula (London, England) was named the Offensive Player of the Year, while teammate David Arvidsson (Gothenburg, Sweden) earned the Defensive Player of the Year honor. Molloy took home a trio of awards with Raul Bonilla (Brentwood, N.Y.) earning Goalkeeper of the Year, Anthony Cestaro (Massapequa, N.Y.) was named the Rookie of the Year, and head coach Danny Longo was selected as the Coach of the Year by his peers.
Ledula, who was the conference's Rookie of the Year a season ago, did not suffer a sophomore slump in 2016. In 16 games, Ledula found the back of the net 16 different times to lead the league. He also added five assists to finish the regular season with 37 points, also an ECC high. Ledula was also tops in both categories in conference play, tallying nine goals and 22 points in ECC action. His name is sprinkled throughout the NCAA Division II leaders, as well, coming in at 10th in the nation in goals, 11th in goals per game (1.0), 12th in total points, 13th in points per game (2.31) and second with eight game-winning goals.
Arvidsson follows through on the coaches prediction after winning the league's Preseason Defensive Player of the Year honor. He anchored a back-line that ranks in the top-10 in Division II with a 0.61 goals against average and a 0.56 shutout percentage. Arvidsson's performance was also vital in helping LIU Post allow only 10 goals over 16 games during the regular season. He also contributed on the offensive end as well, ranking third on the Pioneers with four goals scored on the year.
Bonilla was outstanding in net in his first season at Molloy. A two-time ECC Defensive Player of the Week, Bonilla finished with a 10-4-0 record between the pipes for the Lions. He also ranked second in the ECC with a 0.93 goals against average and an .806 save percentage. In addition, Bonilla tied for the conference lead with six shutouts on the season.
Cestaro was the second leading freshman scorer in the league, helping the Lions to an ECC Championship berth. The one-time ECC Rookie of the Week selection tallied four goals and six assists to finish with 14 points on the season. His six assists were tied for seventh in the conference.
For the second time in his career and the first time at Molloy, Danny Longo has been selected as the Coach of the Year. Longo guided his team to the No. 2 seed in the ECC Championship after finishing with 11-4-0 (7-2-0 ECC) record during the regular season. Earning the No. 2 seed earned the Lions their first home playoff game since the 2008 season.
2016 ECC Men's Soccer All-Conference
First Team
F - Charlie Ledula, So., LIU Post
F - Kyle Poetzsch, Sr., Molloy
F - Mosiah Whyte, Sr., Molloy
M - Erik Berthagen, Jr., LIU Post
M - Adam Carnwath, Jr., Molloy
M - Harry Pearse, Jr., LIU Post
M - Ben Wilson, Sr., NYIT
B - David Arvidsson, Jr., LIU Post
B - Brad Neal, So., St. Thomas Aquinas
B - Joshua Zapata, Sr., Molloy
GK - Raul Bonilla, So, Molloy
Second Team
F - Jason Lampkin, Sr., LIU Post
F - Malcolm Shaw, Sr., Roberts Wesleyan
F - Martin Sundell, So., NYIT
M - Andras Breuer, So., Queens
M - Steven Jimenez, Sr., Molloy
M - Lucca Lacerda, So., Mercy
M - Luis Morales, So., St. Thomas Aquinas
M - Gabriel Torres, Fr., District of Columbia
B - Dan Babar, Jr., NYIT
B - Johan Mauritzson, Jr., LIU Post
B - Mario Ruiz, Sr., Molloy
GK - Jesper Malmstrom, Sr., LIU Post
Third Team
F - Anthony Cestaro, Fr., Molloy
F - Nikolas Maher, Sr., Queens
F - Ericson Penate, Jr., Mercy
M - Jay Abreu, Sr., Bridgeport
M - Donovan Cesar, So., Mercy
M - Alejand Coyt-Orozco, Jr., St. Thomas Aquinas
M - Krishen Patel, Jr., NYIT
B - Nico Kjaer Anderson, So., LIU Post
B - Alex Billington, Gr., LIU Post
B - Victor Salinas Furio, Sr., District of Columbia
GK - Jonathan Rico, Jr., NYIT
Offensive Player of the Year: Charlie Ledula, So., F, LIU Post
Defensive Player of the Year: David Arvidsson, Jr., B, LIU Post
Goalkeeper of the Year: Raul Bonilla, So., Molloy
Rookie of the Year: Anthony Cestaro, Fr., F, Molloy
Coach of the Year: Danny Longo, Molloy
