The 2005 all-conference men’s soccer team is highlighted by several things that have never happened before in Valley men’s soccer. For the first time in league history, two players will share the league’s Player of the Year award, as Drake’s Jesse Baker and Ryan Anderson have been named co-Players of the Year by a vote of league coaches. It’s the first time that a player from either school has captured the league’s top honor.
Bradley’s Chris Dunsheath, meanwhile, becomes the first goalkeeper in league history to earn all-conference honors four-straight years, which includes three-straight first-team plaudits. The Valley’s Freshman of the Year honors goes to Creighton’s Byron Dacy -- the first Bluejay to win that award since 1992. And the league’s Coach of the Year is Vanderbilt’s Tim McClements. He’s the first Commodore coach to take the league’s top coaching award.
FIRST TEAM
GK -- Chris Dunsheath, Bradley, Sr.
D -- Justin Douglass, Missouri State, Jr.
D -- Corey Farabi, Drake, Sr.
D -- Matt Wieland, Creighton, Sr.
M -- Jesse Baker, Drake, Sr.
M -- Chris Hamburger, Drake, Sr.
F -- Ryan Anderson, Missouri State, So.
F -- Jimmy Klatter, Eastern Illinois, Sr.
F -- John Krause, Vanderbilt, Sr.
F -- Danny May, Missouri State, So.
F -- Richard Mupfudze, Western Kentucky, Sr.
SECOND TEAM
GK -- Nathan Platz, Missouri State, Sr.
D -- Adam Hage, Bradley, Sr.
D -- Ryan Junge, Creighton, Jr.
D -- Jeff Kellogg, Bradley, Sr.
D -- Jason Pele, Evansville, Jr.
M -- Salim Bullen, Bradley, Sr.
M -- Steve Chromik, Bradley, Sr.
M -- Brian Mascarenhas, Vanderbilt, Fr.
M -- Vince Odorisio, Creighton, Sr.
F -- Byron Dacy, Creighton, Fr.
F -- Joe Germanese, Vanderbilt, So.
F -- Michael Kraus, Creighton, Jr.
HONORABLE MENTION:
GK -- Kenny Schoeni, Vanderbilt; D -- Kai Harris, Missouri State; D -- Brady Hyde, Vanderbilt; D -- Brian Kline, Western Kentucky; M -- Adam Gartner, Eastern Illinois; M -- Mick Galeski, Eastern Illinois; M -- Brian Pasierb, Missouri State; M -- Pat Ryan, Vanderbilt; M -- Jarod Tarver, Creighton; F -- Besmir Bega, Drake; F -- Zach Bell, Bradley.
ALL-FRESHMAN TEAM
M -- Justin Alford, Missouri State
D -- Kellington Boddie, Missouri State
F -- Byron Dacy, Creighton
F -- Dustin Downey, Western Kentucky
F -- Trevor Eastman, Creighton
M -- Adam Gartner, Eastern Illinois
GK -- Mark Hansen, Eastern Illinois
F -- Jake Henneman, Drake
M -- Brian Mascarenhas, Vanderbilt
F -- Patrick Murray, Vanderbilt
M -- Conor Neusel, Vanderbilt
F -- Brad Peters, Eastern Illinois
CO-PLAYERS OF THE YEAR: Jesse Baker, Drake & Ryan Anderson, Missouri State
DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Chris Dunsheath, Bradley
FRESHMAN OF THE YEAR: Byron Dacy, Creighton
COACH OF THE YEAR: Tim McClements, Vanderbilt
Two of the league’s top scorers share the honor for Player of the Year. Oddly, neither player has earned first- or second-team all-MVC honors previously in their careers. Senior Jesse Baker of Drake is the top scorer in conference games, with six goals in Drake’s seven league games. The active career scoring leader for the Bulldogs, the senior from Liberty, Mo., entered Wednesday’s action with 56 career points, including 23 goals. He has 12 goals and two assists for 26 points this year, which ties for second in the league in scoring. Baker was an honorable mention all-confernce selection as a sophomore in 2003.
Just a sophomore, Ryan Anderson led the way on offense for Missouri State this year. He topped the league with 14 goals during the regular season, and added three assists, for an MVC-best 31 points. He had six game-winners, including three (of four MSU wins) in conference play. The second-year player from St. Charles, Mo., is the first sophomore to earn league Player of the Year honors since Tulsa’s Ryan Pore took the top honor in 2003. Pore, as a junior last year, earned National Player of the Year honors by Soccer America.
The league’s top defensive player is Chris Dunsheath of Bradley. He holds a Bradley single-season record with 10 shutouts this year, while his 26.5 career shutouts are an MVC record. Having already played 7,927 career minutes, Dunsheath should become the fifth goalkeeper in NCAA I history to play at least 8,000 minutes. He enters the tournament as No. 7 in Division I history for career minutes. Dunsheath is one of only seven players in league history to earn first- or second-team honors all four seasons, but he’s the first goalie to accomplish the feat (the others: F Brian Mullan, Creighton; F Johnny Torres, Creighton; F Gavin Glinton, Bradley; F Matt Caution, Missouri State; M Jarod Bertrand, Missouri State; M Pedro Delgado, Evansville.)
The league’s Freshman of the Year, Byron Dacy, was a potent part of Creighton’s attack. He led the Bluejays with 19 points, which included seven goals -- three of which were game winners. Dacy and fellow freshman Brian Mascarenhas of Vanderbilt were the only first-year players to earn all-conference honors, as each were named to the second-team unit. Dacy joins Paul Lekics (1992) as the only Bluejays to earn the league’s Freshman of the Year honor. Notably, former Bluejay Ross Paule earned the league’s Newcomer of the Year award in 1994, but did so as a freshman.
Vanderbilt head coach Tim McClements was voted Coach of the Year. Picked fifth in the pre-season poll, the Commodores managed a third-place finish, matching their best showing in The Valley since joining the conference as an affiliate member in 1997. Vanderbilt, in fact, had not had a winning season since 1999, and the No. 3 tournament seed is the best in seven league tournament trips. The 9-6-1 regular-season mark is the best for Vanderbilt under McClements, now in his fourth year with the Commodores. He has a 52-83-11 career mark (prior to Wednesday’s match vs. Eastern Illinois), which includes a four-year head coaching stint at Eastern Illinois.