NEWPORT NEWS, Va. – Fordham’s Janos Loebe and Joergen Oland, VCU’s Siad Haji and coach Dave Giffard, and Saint Louis' John Klein earned the Atlantic 10 Conference’s top men’s soccer awards, which were announced Thursday ahead of the 2018 A-10 Championship Semifinals.
Loebe was chosen as the league’s Offensive Player of the Year while Oland was named the Defensive Player of the Year. Haji was selected as Midfielder of the Year, Klein was chosen as Rookie of the Year and Giffard was selected by his peers as A-10 Coach of the Year. The league also announced All-Conference First and Second Teams, the All-Academic Team and the All-Rookie Team.
A senior forward from Kierspe, Germany, Loebe led both the Atlantic 10 and Fordham in assists this season with 11. He also led the league with 25 points this year and his 23 shots on goal ranked him fourth in the conference for the season. Along with being named the Player of the Year, Loebe was also named to the All-Conference First Team and was a two-time A-10 Offensive Player of the Week this season. Loebe was named to the prestigious 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy Watch list prior to the 2018 season.
Oland, a Drammen, Norway, product, helped contribute to Fordham’s five shutouts and eight wins this year and its 0.95 goals against average. To go along with the junior’s superior defense, Oland added five goals on 28 shots (10 on goal) and 10 points for the year. He was also selected to the All-Conference First Team and was named Offensive Player of the Week in week three of the season.
Haji, a Manchester, N.H., native, finished the year tied for second in assists (10), tied for eighth in points (20), and tied for 14th in goals (5) in the Atlantic 10. Along with the junior midfielder’s All-Conference First Team selection, Haji was named Offensive Player of the Week twice during the 2018 season.
Klein finished the year with nine goals, tying him for third in the A-10, and his 19 points ranked him inside the top 10. Along with being named Rookie of the Year, the freshman forward from Columbia, Mo., was also an All-Conference Second Team selection.
Giffard, in his ninth season, led VCU to a 6-1-1 conference record and a 10-5-2 overall record. Giffard has led the Rams to three NCAA appearances and was named one of the top 10 coaches in Division I by TopDrawerSoccer.
The 2018 Atlantic 10 Men’s Soccer Championship began last weekend with four quarterfinal matches at campus sites. Friday’s semifinals feature top-seeded VCU versus fourth-seeded Rhode Island at 1:00 pm and third-seeded George Mason squaring off against seventh-seeded Dayton at 3:30 pm. The championship final will be played Sunday at noon. All championship games will air on ESPN+, with the winner advancing to the NCAA Tournament.
Offensive Player of the Year: Janos Loebe, Fordham
Defensive Player of the Year: Joergen Oland, Fordham
Midfielder of the Year: Siad Haji, VCU
Rookie of the Year: John Klein, Saint Louis
Coach of the Year: Dave Giffard, VCU
All-Conference First Team
Forwards
Janos Loebe, Fordham
Leon Maric, Saint Joseph's
Oscar Haynes Brown, George Washington
Midfield
Siad Haji, VCU
Dominik Richter, Rhode Island
Devin Boyce, Saint Louis
Defense
Lennart Hein, Saint Louis
Jordan Hill, Davidson
Joergen Oland, Fordham
Peder Kristiansen, Rhode Island
First Team Goalkeeper
Rashid Nuhu, Fordham
All-Conference Second Team
Forwards
Stavros Zarokostas, Rhode Island
John Klein, Saint Louis
Kosi Nwafornso, St. Bonaventure
DeAndrae Brown, Massachusetts
Midfield
Jaylen Thompson, Davidson
Rok Taneski, Dayton
Edvin Akselsen, Rhode Island
Defense
Ulrik Edvardsen, VCU
Tyler Dickson, Rhode Island
Konrad Gorich, Massachusetts*
Ryo Shimazaki, VCU*
Second Team Goalkeeper
Mario Sequeira, VCU
ALL-ROOKIE TEAM
Henry Howell, Davidson
Elias Harryson, Dayton
Manel Busquets, Duquesne
Sindri Ingimarsson, Fordham
Ato Williams, George Mason
Marcelo Lage, George Washington
Yosuke Hanya, Massachusetts
Edvin Akselsen, Rhode Island
Sondre Karterud, Rhode Island
Isaac Boamah, St. Bonaventure
John Klein, Saint Louis
ALL-ACADEMIC TEAM
Aidan Bean, Dayton
Daniel Dos Santos, Dayton
Rok Taneski, Dayton
Austin Stout, Duquesne
Alastair Berry, George Washington
Thor Arne Höfs, George Washington
Davis Smith, Massachusetts
Peder Kristiansen, Rhode Island
Niklas Middrup, Rhode Island
Kosi Nwafornso, St. Bonaventure
David Grana, Saint Joseph’s
Lennart Hein, Saint Louis
Simon Fitch, VCU
Joseph Gonnella, VCU
Eli Lockaby, VCU