Men's Soccer Captain Julius James Named NSCAA First Team All-AmericaMISSION, Kan. (December 1, 2006) - Julius James (Maloney Gardens, Trinidad), a junior on the University of Connecticut men's soccer team, became one of just seven players to earn National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America honors for the second consecutive season, as announced by the NSCAA Friday.
A total of 37 athletes from 31 schools were recognized, including seven from BIG EAST schools.
The All-America nod caps off a postseason full of awards for the junior defender. James finished the season as the BIG EAST Defender of the Year for the second-straight time after being tabbed as the 2006 Preseason Defensive Player of the Year. A 2006 M.A.C. Hermann Trophy semifinalist and two-time candidate for the award, he helped the Huskies hold opponents to 1.17 goals per game this season, while tallying five shutouts on the year and leading the Huskies to as high as No. 7 in the nation. As a two-time All-BIG EAST First Team honoree, James played and started in all 19 games this season, tallying two goals, including the game-winner at Marquette and one in the NCAA Tournament First Round game against Fairfield.
James, who earned Second Team recognition last season, is UConn's 10th First Team All-America honoree in school history and the third under Head Coach Ray Reid. He joins the prestigious company of: James Blozie (1949), Pedro DeBrito (1981), Carlos Fetterolf (1948), Chris Gbandi (2000 & 2001), R. Paul Hunter (1976), Frantz Innocent (1974), Erhardt Kapp (1980), Joe M. Morrone (1980) and Maurizio Rocha (1998).
The other repeat honorees were: Scott Jones (UNC-Greensboro), who claimed his third award and first-team repeaters Andrew Boyens (New Mexico) and Greg Dalby (Notre Dame). Rounding out the list were second-team selections Tally Hall (San Diego State), Andy Iro (UC Santa Barbara) and Sinisa Ubiparipovic (Akron).
The honorees will be invited to the NSCAA All-America Luncheon, which will be held on Saturday, Jan. 13, as part of the 2007 NSCAA Convention. The winners of the men’s and women’s M.A.C. Hermann Trophy will be announced on Saturday, Dec. 2, in a news conference that will air live on ESPNews at 6:45 p.m. EST.
2006 NSCAA/adidas
Men's Collegiate All-America Team
NCAA Division I
First Team
Pos., Name, Cl., School, Hometown
K, Nick Noble, Sr., West Virginia, Damascus, Md.
D, Andrew Boyens *, Sr., New Mexico, Dunedin, New Zealand
D, Julius James *, Jr., Connecticut, Maloney Gardens, TrinidadD, Jay Needham, Sr., SMU, Fort Worth, Texas
D, John O'Reilly, Sr., Lehigh, Arlington, Mass.
M, Greg Dalby *, Sr., Notre Dame, Poway, Calif.
M, Maurice Edu, Jr., Maryland, Fontana, Calif.
M, Ryan Maduro, Jr., Providence, Bristol, R.I.
F, Omar Cummings, Sr., Cincinnati, Old Harbour, Jamaica
F, Charlie Davies, Jr., Boston College, Manchester, N.H.
F, Edson Elcock, Sr., Old Dominion, Brooklyn, N.Y.
F, Joseph Lapira, Jr., Notre Dame, Lake Charles, Calif.
Second Team
Pos., Name , Cl., School, Hometown
K, Tally Hall *, Sr., San Diego State, Gig Harbor, Wash.
D, Andy Iro *, Jr., UCSB, Liverpool, England
D, Steve Purdy, Sr., California, San Jose, Calif.
D, Julian Valentin, Jr., Wake Forest, Lancaster, Pa.
M, Eric Avila, So., UCSB, Encinitas, Calif.
M, Nico Colaluca, Jr., Virginia, Coventry, R.I.
M, Sinisa Ubiparipovic *, Sr., Akron, Mentor, Ohio
M, Sal Zizzo, So., UCLA, San Diego, Calif.
F, Dane Richards, Sr., Clemson, Montego Bay, Jamaica
F, Tonci Skroce, Sr., Illinois-Chicago, Zadar, Croatia
F, Jarrod Smith, Sr., West Virginia, Havelock, New Zealand
F, Michael Todd, Sr., Hofstra, Cleveland, England
Third Team
Pos., Name , Cl., School, Hometown
K, Chris Seitz, So., Maryland, San Luis Obispo, Calif.
D, Ty Harden, Sr., Washington, Junction City, Ore.
D, Aaron Hohlbein, Sr., Wisconsin, Middleton, Wis.
D, Joe Verdi, Sr., Lehigh, Ivyland, Pa.
M, John DiRaimondo, Sr., Saint Louis, St. Louis, Mo.
M, Bruno Guarda, So., SMU, Piracicaba, Brrazil
M, Scott Jones **, Sr., UNC-Greensboro, Dallas, Texas
M, Josh Tudela, Sr., Indiana, Evansville, Ind.
M, Mike Videira, Jr., Duke, Milford, Mass.
F, Brad Evans, Sr., UC Irvine, Phoenix, Ariz.
F, Sebastian Haensel, Sr., Towson, Leipzig, Germany
F, Steven Holloway, Sr., Monmouth, Hamilton, New Zealand
F, Joshua Okoampa, Sr., Wisconsin-Green Bay, Brooklyn Park, Minn.