Danbury, Conn. – (November 29, 2017) - The Eastern College Athletic Conference (ECAC) announced the 2017 Men's Soccer All-ECAC Teams on Wednesday with two Fordham Rams being honored, as senior defender
Matthew Lewis (Kansas City, Mo) and junior goalkeeper
Rashid Nuhu (Accra, Ghana) were named All-ECAC First Team.
In order to be eligible for All-ECAC honors, a player must have been selected to his conference's All-League First Team and the school must be an active member of the ECAC.
For Lewis and Nuhu, it is the second major postseason accolade of the season, as both have been integral parts of the Rams' run to the NCAA quarterfinal round, which continues on Saturday at #3 seed North Carolina.
Lewis, the 2017 Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection, has been the iron man on the Rams' backline, playing over 2,000 minutes this season for Fordham while missing only two minutes of action. He has two goals on the year from his defender position and has set a new career-high with four assists. He has led the Rams to 11 team shutouts, which is tied for fifth in the NCAA, and has set the career records for games played and started at Fordham with 83.
Nuhu, a First Team All-Atlantic 10 selection, has played every second of the 2017 season in goal for the Rams, setting a new Fordham single season record for goalkeepers in minutes played at 2,050, while his 11 shutouts this season are the second-highest single season total, just one of the pace of Jeff Knuth in 1987. He was named Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Week four times this season, and was recently named Player of the Week by Top Drawer Soccer after posting three saves in regulation and overtime and three more in a penalty kick shootout at Duke. He has also risen up the career records list at Fordham among goalkeepers, ranking second in goals against average (0.90), third in minutes played (5,410), shutouts (24), and appearances (57).
ECAC Division I Men's Soccer Awards and All-ECAC Selections
Offensive Player of the Year - Mark Forrest – Lehigh University
Defensive Player of the Year - Ivan Blaskic – University of Massachusetts Lowell
Rookie of the Year - Davis Smith – University of Massachusetts
Coach of the Year - Tom Giovatto– St. Francis College- Brooklyn
All-ECAC First Team
Mark Forrest – Lehigh University
Mario Mastrangelo – Saint Francis University
Mamadou Guirassy – New Jersey Institute of Technology
Rasmus Hansen – Long Island University- Brooklyn
Joe Swenson – University of Pennsylvania
Alex DeSantis – University of Massachusetts
Ivan Blaskic – University of Massachusetts Lowell
Aram Ouiligan– Colgate University
Matthew Lewis – Fordham University
Faouzi Taieb – St. Francis College-Brooklyn
Rashid Nuhu – Fordham University
All-ECAC Honorable Mention
Allen Gavilanes – Marist College
Mac Steeves – Providence College
Jose Aguinaga – Rider University
Jakov Basic – University of Massachusetts Lowell
Sylvain Coco – Rider University
