Aug. 11, 2010
BRONX, N.Y. - Fordham's goalkeeper Ryan Meara (Yonkers, N.Y./Fordham Prep) continues to make a name for himself nationally as he was among the countries' elite players named to the Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch list, which was announced by officials from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America on Wednesday. The recognition comes just six days after he was named United Soccer Leagues Premier Development League (USL/PDL) Goalkeeper of the Year playing for his summer team, the Ironbound Express.
The Hermann Trophy is presented annually to the selected NCAA Division I Player of the Year. Considered the highest individual honor in intercollegiate soccer, the recipients of the M.A.C.'s Hermann Trophy are selected by Division I head coaches who are current members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
Meara, the Rams' starting goalkeeper, is one of 39 players selected to the annual watch list. The last He is one of three players from the Atlantic 10 to receive recognition as Saint Louis' junior forward Michael Roach and Massachusetts' senior midfielder Benjamin Arikian were among those selected.
For the Fordham men's soccer program, Meara is the second player in two years to be selected to the annual preseason list. Defender John Pardini (Smithtown, N.Y./Smithtown) was among the 48 chosen to the 2008 Hermann watch list.
Meara represents one of two players from the Association of Jesuit Colleges and Universities, with Roach from Saint Louis as the other representative. Fordham is one of three Catholic institutions who have players on the list.
In addition to his national recognition, the junior was selected as a 2010 preseason Atlantic 10 All-Conference selection after garnering 2009 NSCAA All-Mid-Atlantic and Atlantic 10 First team honors. Meara played all but nine minutes last season (1767:45), posted a 9-7-3 record, a 1.02 goals against average, and 7.5 shutouts. In league play, Meara led the Rams to a 6-1-2 mark, posting a 0.85 goals against average, 4.5 shutouts, and a better than .800 save percentage.
A total of 30 different schools and four countries are represented on the list, including players from the United States, Canada, Germany and Jamaica.
Voting for the MAC Hermann Trophy is conducted in late November, when a field of 15 semifinalists is reduced to three finalists. Those three will be invited to the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis on Friday, Jan. 7, 2011, where a news conference will be held to announce the winner, followed by a banquet to honor the three finalists.
