Men’s Soccer – Five Broncos Garner All-WCC Honors

Posted: Nov 16, 2022

SAN MATEO, Calif. – Oladayo Thomas headlines a total of five Santa Clara men's soccer players named to the All-West Coast Conference team, the conference office announced on Wednesday.

Thomas lived up to his preseason all-conference billing by repeating as a first-team selection earning a spot at one of the three forward positions. Caden Buckley and Eduardo Lopez Perez were named honorable mention while Pierce Dyal and James Redington were picked to the freshman team.

The all-conference teams and award winners were voted on by the conference's eight head coaches with selection based on the outstanding athletic achievement in overall and league competition.

New this year is a specific position format for the first team all-conference selection as it allowed for three forwards, four midfielders, three defenders and one goalkeeper to be selected. This new format, specific only to the first team, was voted on by the coaches during the offseason.

Thomas is the eighth Bronco named as multiple first-team selection in the last 20 years joining Javier Ruiz Duran (2019-21), Carlos Delgadillo (2015 and 2017), Erik Hurtado (2010-12), Mykell Bates (2010-11), Jalil Anibaba (2007 and 2009), Mehdi Ballouchy (2004-05) and Ryan Cochrane (2002-03).

The senior forward from Lagos, Nigeria led the Broncos with nine points including a team-high four goals and added an assist. He scored the game-winning goal at Utah Tech and tallied seven points in the last six games including goals at San Francisco and against LMU.

Buckley, a junior, started in all 13 games he appeared in, collecting a pair of assists to earn his second honorable mention recognition. Both his assists came in league play against San Francisco on Bar Hazut's game-winning goal and against Saint Mary's that finished in a 1-all draw. During the 2020 season (played in the spring of 2021), the midfielder from Las Vegas was named both honorable mention and to the freshman team.

Lopez Perez earned his second all-league recognition with his strong play in the midfield. The fifth-year senior started in 13 of the 15 matches he appeared in. He started in all seven WCC matches with all five points coming in those games. Lopez Perez scored a goal at San Francisco and the equalizer against Saint Mary's and had an assist against Gonzaga. In 2018, he was named to the All-Freshman team.

A pair of first-year players, Dyal and Redington, were named to the All-Freshman squad.

Both Dyal and Redington started in all seven league games. Overall, Dyal made 12 starts in the 15 games he appeared in as the midfielder finished with two goals on the year. For Redington, he started in all 14 games he appeared in and had three assists including two in league play against San Francisco and LMU in back-to-back games.

WCC Champion San Diego took home four of the six major player awards. LMU's Noel Caliskan was named the Midfielder of the Year for the second-straight time but San Diego's Brandon Cambridge was named Offensive Player of the Year, an award Caliskan took home the previous two seasons. San Diego's Trevor Dillon was named Defender of the Year with another Torero, Simon Duus Muller taking home the Freshman of the Year honors. Jason Dubrovich of San Diego and George Tasouris of Portland were co-Goalkeepers of the Year while Brian Quinn was named Coach of the Year.