Virginia’s Morgan Brian and UCLA’s Leo Stolz are the 2014 MAC Hermann Trophy Winners
Brian Becomes Eighth Player to Win Back-to-Back Trophies
Virginia senior midfielder Morgan Brian and UCLA senior midfielder Leo Stolz have been voted as the 2014 MAC Hermann Trophy winners.
The Missouri Athletic Club’s (MAC) Hermann Trophy is presented to the best female and male players in NCAA Division I soccer. The winners were decided by a vote of NCAA Division I soccer coaches that are current College Services members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA).
Brian is the eighth player overall to win back-to-back Herman trophies, and the first female player to accomplish the feat since 11-time Canada Soccer Player of the Year Christine Sinclair (University of Portland, 2004 and 2005). Additionally, Brian joins an esteemed list of female soccer players that have been awarded the Trophy in consecutive years, including Sinclair, and Olympic gold medalists Cindy Parlow (UNC)and Mia Hamm (UNC).
This past season, Brian helped lead the Cavaliers to the NCAA Division I Women’s College Cup final for the first time. She was the leading scorer in this year’s tournament with four goals and nine assists, including tying the NCAA Tournament single-game record with five assists in Virginia’s 8-0 first-round win against High Point.
In her 18 game appearances for Virginia, she tallied 10 goals and 14 assists. Brian also became the first three-time NSCAA First Team All-American in the program’s history and was also named 2014 U.S. Soccer Young Female Athlete of the Year.
Brian also pulled double-duty this fall, representing the U.S. in the CONCACAF World Cup qualifying tournament in October. She was the only current collegiate player on the U.S. Women’s National Team.
Runners-up for the women’s award were Florida State senior midfielder Dagny Brynjarsdottir (Hella, Iceland) and UCLA senior midfielder Sam Mewis (Hanson, Mass.).
A 2013 MAC Hermann Trophy finalist, Stolz played in integral part in leading the Bruins through the NCAA Men’s Division I Tournament to national runners-up status. The Munich, Germany, native started in all 24 games for the Bruins, logging 2,054 minutes which is the most among UCLA attacking players. Offensively, he led the team in goals (9) and points (24), and tied the lead in assists (6).
Stolz also earned a number of postseason accolades, including being named First Team All-Pac-12, NSCAA First Team All-Far West and All-American for the second year in a row. He was also invited to the 2015 MLS Combine.
Stolz becomes the third UCLA player to be named National Player of the Year and first since the MAC Player of the Year award and the Hermann Trophy merged in 2002. The Bruins’ past winners were Sasha Victorine who won the MAC Player of the Year award in 1999 and Brad Friedel who won the Hermann Trophy in 1992.
Stolz, who was also a finalist for the MAC Hermann trophy last season, earned consensus first team All-American honors for the second-straight season from the Pac-12, NSCAA, College Soccer News and Top Drawer Soccer. The two-year team captain started all 24 games for the Bruins, leading the team in goals (9) and points (24), while tying for the lead in assists (6). A native of Munich, Germany, Stolz logged 2,054 minutes and recorded points in 11 of his 24 matches. In the postseason, Stolz recorded two goals and two assists, including the overtime game-winner in the second round against San Diego on Nov. 23. Stolz was an instrumental player in the midfield for UCLA during the College Cup Final Four, earning All-Tournament team honors for his efforts.
Stolz finishes his three-year UCLA career with 20 goals, 22 assists and 62 points in 63 appearances (60 starts). The senior led the Bruins to three-straight NCAA Tournament appearances, including a trip to the College Cup Finals in 2014. Additionally, Stolz earned Pac-12 Conference Player of the Year last season after leading the conference with 30 points. Upon conclusion of his collegiate career, Stolz was invited to the 2015 Major League Soccer Combine and will look to continue his career professionally in the United States.
Runners-up for the men’s award were Syracuse junior goalkeeper Alex Bono (Baldwinsville, N.Y.) and North Carolina senior forward Andy Craven (St. Simons Island, Ga.).
Did you know? In 1967, Robert Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the NPSL’s successor, the North American Soccer League, established a trophy to annually recognize the top men’s collegiate soccer player. The trophy, named the Hermann Trophy, has been awarded each year since 1967. In 1988, a second Hermann Trophy was inaugurated to recognize the top women’s collegiate player of the year.
In 1986, the Missouri Athletic Club (MAC) began naming an annual player of the year as a rival to the Hermann Trophy. Then in 1996, the NSCAA initiated its own annual player of the year award. These three competing awards began merging three years later when the NSCAA and MAC agreed to cooperate on naming a combined collegiate player of the year. Finally, beginning in 2002, the NSCAA, the Missouri Athletic Conference and the Hermann Trophy merged to create a unified award for the top college soccer player of the year.
For more information about the history of the MAC Hermann Trophy and a list of past winners, visit the MAC Hermann Trophy.
For news and highlight reels from previous MAC Hermann presentations, visit lockerdome.com/machermanntrophy/home.
The Missouri Athletic Club has been presenting college soccer’s players of the year awards since 1986. The MAC was established in 1903 as an athletic, dining and social club. It has a “Platinum Club of America” status, which is awarded to the top private clubs in the country. To learn more about the Missouri Athletic Club, go to mac-stl.org.
