10 PacWest players earn place on 2011 Daktronics NCAA II West Region Men’s Soccer Team

ROHNERT PARK, CA - Ten Pacific West Conference men’s soccer players have earned a place on the 2011 Daktronics NCAA Division II West Region Team.

Grand Canyon senior defender Nick Sykes (Boise, ID/Mountain View) and junior forward Saeed Robinson (Portmore, Jamaica), Notre Dame de Namur senior midfielder Oscar Yniguez (Redwood City, CA/Woodside) and senior forward Cristobal Montes (Tijuana, Mexico/John F. Kennedy), and Hawai‘i Pacific senior forward Chance Bukoski (Kapaa, HI/Kapaa) all were selected to the First Team.

The quintet of players now will be placed on the national ballot for the 2011 Daktronics NCAA Division II All-American Team that will be announced on Nov. 30.

Dixie State senior defender Clayton Alexander (Issaquah, WA/Issaquah) and senior midfielder Nyle Ortiz (Layton, UT/Layton), Grand Canyon junior defender Alex Connally (Warrington, England) and senior middie Cordero Young (Orlando, FL/Central Florida Christian Academy), and NDNU senior forward Christian Rosales (Redwood City, CA/St. Francis) each were named to the Second Team.

Division II sports information directors representing colleges and universities eligible for NCAA II Championships nominate their student-athletes for the regional and national award. SIDs vote on the All-Region teams that are aligned with the Division II Championship structure. Athletes selected as a First Team choice are placed on the national ballot.

Bukoski – the 2011 Pacific West Conference Men’s Soccer Player of the Year and a four-time All-PacWest First Team selection (2008-11) - helped lead the Sea Warriors to a share of their first PacWest Championship by recording 44 points on 18 goals and eight assists this season. He was 2 for 2 on penalty kick attempts and was responsible for seven game-winning goals.

Robinson – the 2011 PacWest Newcomer of the Year - totaled 36 points on 16 goals and four assists while recording five game-winning scores and converting his lone penalty kick attempt. He was named All-PacWest First Team for his efforts.

Montes - the 2008 PacWest Player and Newcomer of the Year - earned his fourth straight All-PacWest First Team selection this season by scoring 14 goals, adding two assists and amassing 30 points. He had two game-winning goals and made 1 of 2 penalty kick attempts.

Young was an All-PacWest First Team midfielder who also claimed First Team honors in 2010. He had 18 points on seven goals and four assists with a trio of game-winning goals.

Rosales finished his PacWest career as a four-time All-PacWest selection. He was a First Team midfielder in 2011 after taking Honorable Mention in 2008, Second Team in 2009 and First Team in 2010. This year he had seven points on five assists and a goal.

Yniguez made his presence felt in the PacWest by accruing 21 points on 11 assists and five goals over 17 starts. He was 1 for 2 on penalty kicks and also earned First Team All-PacWest honors.

Ortiz – an All-PacWest Second Team Midfield choice in 2011 and 2010 – produced 13 points on five goals and three assists this season. He was 1 for 1 on penalty kicks and scored two game-winning goals.

Sykes wrapped up his tenure at Grand Canyon in 2011 by claiming his fourth All-PacWest honor. He was a First Team choice this season and in 2009, a Second Team pick in 2010, and an Honorable Mention in 2008. He contributed two goals, one assist, five points and one game-winner, and he was 1 for 2 in penalty kick attempts.

Alexander was named All-PacWest First Team this year and capped his season with five points on two goals and one assist.

Connally was a PacWest Second Team choice on defense in 2011 and helped GCU’s offense by pitching in nine points on three goals and three assists.