Six members of the Canisius College men's soccer team were honored by Upper 90 Magazine, which selected the top players in Western New York on Thursday.
Highlighting the Canisius honorees are junior Andrew Coughlin and sophomore Thomas Teupen. Coughlin earned Western New York Goalkeeper of the Year accolades, while Teupen was named Defender of the Year. Senior forward Asani Samuels joined the duo on the All-Western New York First Team, while juniors Alex De Carolis and Nicoló Baudo were named to the second team and senior Derek Maier collected third-team honors.
In his first season in the Blue & Gold, Coughlin set or matched three school records in net. He established new school standards with a 0.84 goals against average and eight shutouts – easily surpassing the previous records of 1.18 and four – while matching the program's mark with nine goaltender victories. The Baldwinsville, N.Y. native also recorded a .805 save percentage during his junior campaign.
The first Griff defender to earn All-MAAC accolades since 2007, Teupen anchored the best defense in program history with Canisius setting school records in fewest goals allowed (16), team goals against average (0.84) and shutouts (eight). A second-team all-conference honoree, Teupen also registered assists in wins over Bryant and St. Bonaventure during the season.
A two-time selection to the all-conference team, including first-team All-MAAC honors in 2014, Samuels set career highs with 19 points, eight goals and three assists during his senior campaign. Samuels finished the regular season ranked fourth in the MAAC in both points and goals, while his four game-winning tallies tied for first in the conference and ranked 19th nationally.
Also an anchor of the team's record-setting defense in 2014, De Carolis started all 18 games for the Griffs and registered three assists, tied for the most on the team this season.
The team's leader in the midfield, Baudo ranked third on the team with seven points this season, scoring two goals in addition to tying for first with three assists. The junior netted his first career game-winning goal this season with an overtime strike against Bryant.
Maier saved his best for his final season in the Canisius Blue & Gold. The senior ranked second on the team with eight points and four goals in 2014 after entering his final campaign with one assist in 41 games during his first three years on campus.
The Griffs had one of their most successful campaigns in school history in 2014, posting a 9-6-3 record and matching the school record for wins in a season. Overall, 11 marks in the program's record book were set or matched during the 2014 season.
