LC's Yeager and Legg, H-SC's DeProspero Honored

SALEM, Va. --- Virginia Wesleyan College striker Brandon Massie capped his collegiate career with a fourth major conference honor in the annual All-ODAC Men's Soccer awards.  Massie earned his third straight ODAC Player of the Year accolade, adding to the top rookie honor he received as a freshman.  Lynchburg College mentor Chris Yeager was tabbed as the ODAC Coach of the Year while fellow Hornet Stephen Legg secured the ODAC/Farm Bureau Scholar-Athlete Award.  Hampden-Sydney College forward Nick DeProspero was named the ODAC Rookie of the Year.

Massie is the only player in ODAC history (dating back to 1976) to win the league's top honor three times, let alone consecutively.  He is one of three Marlins to have earned the award multiple times, a list that includes former standout, Gary DePalma (1995 and 1997) and current VWC head coach, Mike McFarland (1990 and 1992).  Massie led the ODAC in all three major offensive categories in 2009, recording 43 points on 16 goals and 11 assists.  His production through four years has warranted career honors for both the conference and Virginia Wesleyan.  His 144 career points and 57 goals are tops in both histories, surpassing former VWC standout, Evan Whitson.  He also owns 30 assists in a Marlins' jersey.

Yeager enjoys his second ODAC top coaching award.  His Hornets finished with a 17-2-3 overall record that included a 7-1-2 mark in conference play.  They entered the ODAC postseason as the third seed, upsetting the No. 2 seed Hampden-Sydney on the way to winning the ODAC title game, 3-1, over Roanoke.  Lynchburg earned the ODAC's automatic qualifier into the NCAA Division III Tournament, defeating Catholic University (3-0) in the first round before bowing out to Christopher Newport University on penalty kicks in round two.

DeProspero helped guide a Hampden-Sydney squad that owned a nine-game winning streak throughout the middle and latter parts of the season.  DeProspero, who split his time as an attacking midfielder and point man up front, was second for H-SC with 20 points on five goals and 10 assists.  His assists total was second in the ODAC behind Massie.

Legg, a senior midfielder, boasts a 3.84 grade point average as a Biomedical Science major.  He holds membership in the Phi Kappa Phi national academic honor society, which is the nation's oldest cross-discipline honor society.  On the field, Legg started in 20-of-21 games played this season, scoring three goals while helping on three others.

Below are the 2009 All-ODAC Men's Soccer Teams.  For more information on ODAC men's soccer, visit any of the participating schools' websites, or go to the ODAC's NEW home on the Internet at www.odaconline.com.


PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Brandon Massie, Virginia Wesleyan
COACH OF THE YEAR: Chris Yeager, Lynchburg
ROOKIE OF THE YEAR: Nick DeProspero, Hampden-Sydney
ODAC/FARM BUREAU SCHOLAR-ATHLETE: Stephen Legg, Lynchburg

ALL-ODAC FIRST TEAM
Mitchell Leap, Forward, Eastern Mennonite
Brandon Massie, Forward, Virginia Wesleyan
Clay Price, Forward, Virginia Wesleyan
Bryan Wharton, Forward, Hampden-Sydney
Pat Brown, Midfielder, Lynchburg
Chris Collins, Midfielder, Roanoke
Taylor Johnston, Midfielder, Roanoke

Josh Reed, Midfielder, Lynchburg
Cameron Lee, Defender, Roanoke
Hunter Smith, Defender, Lynchburg
Michael Stark, Defender, Roanoke
Jared Troyer, Defender, Eastern Mennonite
Dillon Brunk, Goalkeeper, Eastern Mennonite

ALL-ODAC SECOND TEAM
Nick DeProspero, Forward, Hampden-Sydney
Freddy Gomez, Forward, Guilford
Donald Hart, Forward, Lynchburg
Kayvon Sarmadi, Forward, Roanoke
Ronal Castellanos, Midfielder, Guilford
Robbie Mann, Midfielder, Virginia Wesleyan
Shane O'Donnell, Midfielder, Bridgewater
Eddie Ratianarivo, Midfielder, Randolph
Lonnie Carter, Defender, Virginia Wesleyan
Brett Chonko, Defender, Hampden-Sydney
Kyle Miller, Defender, Virginia Wesleyan
Zach Ward, Defender, Lynchburg
John Robert Plyler, Goalkeeper, Hampden-Sydney

HONORABLE MENTION ALL-ODAC
Ethan Cornelio, Midfielder, Randolph-Macon
Drew Crowley, Midfielder, Washington and Lee
Zac Cundiff, Defender, Bridgewater
Jeff Floyd, Forward, Guilford
Bryan Hughes, Forward, Hampden-Sydney
Aaron Humphreys, Goalkeeper, Randolph
Erik Olson, Defender, Emory & Henry
Bryce Shank, Midfielder, Eastern Mennonite
Matt Sturdivant, Goalkeeper, Lynchburg
Cameron Travalini, Forward, Roanoke
Ryan Zmuda, Goalkeeper, Virginia Wesleyan