West Babylon, N.Y. – After a dominating regular season, Mercy swept the top honors in the East Coast Conference Women's Soccer All-Conference awards announced on Friday. Nikki Bermudez (Oceanside, N.Y.) and Sydney Cooper (Long Beach, Calif.) earned the Offensive and Defensive Player of the Year laurels while freshman teammates, Kamy Anaya (Long Beach, Calif.) and Ancksu Dixon (Freeport, N.Y.), were named the Goalkeeper of the Year and Rookie of the Year. Head coach, Danny Leon, Jr, was also named the Coach of the Year by his peers.
Bermudez, a three-time All-Conference honoree, takes home the Offensive Player of the Year award. The graduate student midfielder ranked third in the conference in goals (9), assists (5), and points (23). She also ranked second in the loop with three game-winning goals on the year.
Bermudez had help on the offensive side of the field from Rookie of the Year, Dixon. In her debut campaign, the forward tallied an ECC-leading 27 points on eight goals and 11 assists. Both her goal and assist totals ranked in the top four in the conference, while her 11 assists rank ninth in the country. Dixon also tied Bermudez with three game-winning tallies on the year, all of which came in conference play to lead the league.
Cooper repeats as the ECC Defensive Player of the Year after helping the Mavericks field one of the stingiest defenses in the ECC and all of Division II. With the help of Cooper, Mercy conceded just eight goals during the regular season, good for an 0.53 goals against average which led the ECC and ranked 18th in the nation. Cooper also contributed with two goals, three assists, and seven points on the season.
Anaya was also an integral part of the Mavericks' defense as she earns the Goalkeeper of the Year award. In her freshman season, Anaya led the ECC with a just seven goals allowed, a 0.54 goal against average, and an .848 save percentage. She was even better in conference play, allowing just one goal for a .944 save percentage.
Leon, Jr. claims the ECC Coach of the Year award for the second straight season. Leon helped the Mavericks to their first-ever outright ECC Regular Season Championship with a 7-0-1 record in conference play. Under his leadership, Mercy has also been ranked nearly all season in the United Soccer Coaches Top 25 poll and currently sit fourth in the latest NCAA East Region ranking.
The conference also announced its All-Conference teams on Friday. Mercy led the way with 11 selections, while Molloy was right behind with nine.
2022 ECC Women's Soccer All-Conference
First Team
F - Kayla Camacho, Mercy
F - Ancksu Dixon, Mercy
F - Ella White, Roberts Wesleyan
M - Mikaela Barriga, Molloy
M - Nikki Bermudez, Mercy
M - Jessica Hoyt, Mercy
M - Eleni Sofroniou, Molloy
B - Sydney Cooper, Mercy
B - Julia Eichel, Daemen
B - Sarah Tappeto, Molloy
GK - Kamy Anaya, Mercy
Second Team
F - Eleonorra Cecchini, D'Youville
F - Alyssa Diaz, Daemen
F - Sienna Nicolich, Molloy
M - Morgan Camarda, Molloy
M - Gabrielle Ciambella, Roberts Wesleyan
M - Larissa Johnston, Roberts Wesleyan
M - Jennifer Silva, Mercy
B - Joanna Mauceri, Molloy
B - Jackie Murphy, Molloy
B - Cassidy Pearce, Roberts Wesleyan
B - Natalia Piotrowski, Molloy
GK - Shannon Kilian, Molloy
Third Team
F - Claudia McKail, Mercy
F - Kylie Miranto, Daemen
F - Sarai Rodriguez, St. Thomas Aquinas
M - Marina Pappas, Queens
M - Tatyjana Scalisi, Daemen
M - Skyler Schwenkler, Mercy
M - Grace Stranahan, Daemen
B - Sarah Anderson, Queens
B - Tyra Anderson, Mercy
B - Madison Rosa, Mercy
GK - Tori DeLappi, Daemen
* Four backs on Second Team due to tie in the voting
Offensive Player of the Year: Nikki Bermudez, Mercy
Defensive Player of the Year: Sydney Cooper, Mercy
Goalkeeper of the Year: Kamy Anaya, Mercy
Rookie of the Year: Ancksu Dixon, Mercy
Coach of the Year: Danny Leon, Jr., Mercy
