Shawn Sloan (Geneva, Ill., Geneva) was named the 2009 Big South Men's Soccer Freshman of the Year and Dustin Fonder was named Big South Men's Soccer Coach of the Year, the conference announced Friday. Matt Tuttle (Winston-Salem, N.C., Reynolds), Fejiro Okiomah (Austin, Texas, Hendrickson-Pflugerville), Todd Ray (San Antonio, Texas, Central Catholic), Patrick Donahue (Raleigh, N.C., Cardinal Gibbons) and Adam Hatem (Charlotte, N.C., North Mecklenburg) also collected Big South honors.

Sloan earned Freshman of the Year honors as well as being named to the All-Freshman team and first team All-Big South. Sloan posted a team-high five goals along with two assists for the season. He was named Big South Player of the Week on Nov. 3 after scoring two goals in 33 seconds in HPU's 4-0 win at VMI.

“Shawn like any freshman had to get acclimated, but once he gained a more significant role his confidence really started to come on and he started producing goals and assists,” said Fonder. “This is a first for our program and we are continually trying to create new firsts as we grow this program to a position of national prominence. We recruited Shawn not only because he is a good player but because he is a great student and an exceptional person. That combination of character and talent is what led him to be Freshman of the Year.”

Fonder was named Coach of the Year after leading the Panthers to a 9-6-2 (5-1-2 Big South) record and second place finish for the season. The team's five conference wins are the most since High Point joined the Big South. Fonder has compiled a 23-28-6 (10-8-4 Big South) record in his three years at High Point, improving from a 1-5-0 Big South record in his first season to a 5-1-2 mark this year.

“I feel honored that my peers like our team enough to select me as the Big South Men's Soccer Coach of the Year,” Fonder said. “This honor is obviously an award shared by many. I would like to thank HPU President Dr. Nido Qubein, Athletics Director Craig Keilitz, our administrative and sports medicine staffs, my coaching staff, and most importantly our team.”

Senior Matt Tuttle joined Sloan on the All-Conference first team after leading HPU with 13 points on four goals and a team-high five assists. The midfielder was named Big South Player of the Week on Oct. 6, after scoring two goals and recording an assist against Gardner-Webb and UNC Asheville.

“We are really excited for Matt, this being his senior year,” said Fonder. “For him to make first team in his final season is a great way to finish a career. Matt has served as one of our three captains and has helped change the competitive culture of HPU soccer.”

Freshman defender Todd Ray and freshman forward Fejiro Okiomah were named second team All-Conference and Okiomah joined Sloan on the All-Freshman team. Ray started every game for the HPU defense, notching one assist. Okiomah totaled 11 points on four goals and three assists.

"Todd is probably one of our most essential players because of the position he plays,” said Fonder. “He is one of the two anchors in the middle of our backline and that is a lot of pressure to put on a player as a freshman. He has accepted that role and risen to the occasion this season. When we recruited Fejiro we thought he would be an impact player. We thought the combination of his character and athleticism would make him a force in our league. He needed some time to acclimate to the college game but he is learning everyday and we are pleased with what he has accomplished in his first year.”

Patrick Donahue joined Sloan and Okiomah on the All-Freshman team. The Raleigh, N.C. native started all 17 games for the Panthers as a midfielder.

“Patrick plays a very important position, but it is a position that doesn't get a lot of glamour.” said Fonder. “ We are happy that he came in and embraced the role of winning second balls, tackling, and doing all those little things necessary for a team to be successful.”

Junior defender Adam Hatem was named to the Big South All-Academic team for the second year. The Charlotte, N.C. native worked his way in to 10 games this season for HPU.

“Adam is valuable member of our program,” Fonder said. “He is able to help us in numerous positions on the field and even more importantly, the leadership role he has played in the locker room and off the field has been a tremendous part of our success this year.”


2009 BIG SOUTH CONFERENCE MEN'S SOCCER ALL-CONFERENCE AND AWARD WINNERS

First-Team All-Conference
Matt Skonicki, F, Winthrop
Gerard Hefferon, F, Gardner-Webb
Darren Amoo, F, Liberty
Djamel Bekka, MF, Coastal Carolina
Stephen Nsereko, MF, Winthrop
Michael Luk, MF, Winthrop
Shawn Sloan, MF, High Point
Matt Tuttle, MF, High Point
Alex Russell, D, Coastal Carolina
Michael Ward, D, Liberty
Jovan Ivanovich, D, Gardner-Webb
Chris Mandell, D, Liberty
Scott Angevine, GK, Coastal Carolina

Second-Team All-Conference
Tim Bullock, F, Liberty
Bryan Bartels, F, UNC Asheville
Fejiro Okiomah, F, High Point
Romeo Kabanda, MF, Gardner-Webb
Matt Schroeder, MF, Coastal Carolina
James Stapleton, MF, Coastal Carolina
Chris Phillips, MF, Liberty
Myle Jones, MF, Radford
Daniel DiBiagio, D, Winthrop
Jon Ole Reinhardsen, D, Gardner-Webb
Ayao Sossou, D, VMI
Todd Ray, D, High Point
A.J. Madero, GK, Liberty

All-Freshman Team
Luis Faz, Coastal Carolina
Sean McCormack, Coastal Carolina
John Sargent, Gardner-Webb
Shawn Sloan, High Point
Fejiro Okiomah, High Point
Patrick Donahue, High Point
Myles Jones, Radford
James Jordan, Radford
Enrique Miranda, Winthrop
Daniel DiBiagio, Winthrop
David Parra, UNC Asheville
Zachery Odum, UNC Asheville

All-Academic Team
Trent Kozman, Gardner-Webb
Juan Guzman, Liberty
Adam Hatem, High Point
Matt Horn, Winthrop
Sam Eastridge, Presbyterian
Justin Zimmer, Radford
Sonny Landry, VMI
Jake Hagedorn, UNC Asheville
Robert Hunter, Coastal Carolina
Jake Sides, UNC Asheville
Michael Ward, Liberty

Player of the Year
Djamel Bekka, MF, Coastal Carolina

Freshman of the Year
Shawn Sloan, MF, High Point

Coach of the Year
Dustin Fonder, High Point

Scholar-Athlete of the Year
Trent Kozman, Gardner-Webb