ORLANDO, Fla. (UCFKnights.com) – For the second consecutive year, the No. 5 UCF men's soccer team has seven Knights as part of an All-Conference team.
First Team All-Conference
Four members of the Black and Gold were named to The American All-Conference Squad. Cal Jennings and Yoni Sorokin were unanimous selections to the first team while Yannik Oettl and Yanis Leerman complete the foursome.
In addition to being named Offensive Player of the Year for the second straight season, Jennings was selected to The American first team for the third consecutive season.
Jennings turned heads in 2018 with his 20-goal campaign and has continued to draw attention for his performance this season. He has posted 13 goals and 30 points while collecting six game-winning goals in 2019. The six game winners bring his career total to 16, which is the most among active players in the NCAA. Jennings is second all-time in the conference when it comes to game winning goals, trailing only UConn's Abdou Mbacke Thiam who gathered 22 from 2015-18. Jennings became just the fourth Knight to reach 40 career goals in a UCF uniform and currently sits in fourth place all time on the career goals scored list.
Yoni Sorokin was a unanimous selection to the Preseason All-Conference team and earns a unanimous nod at the season's end. Sorokin has been named to the All-Conference first team in each of his three seasons with UCF and earned the 2019 American Midfielder of the Year Award as well. Sorokin has netted four goals and tallied five assists so far this season. He has been a key piece in powering the Black and Gold's offense which currently ranks 11th in the nation, providing a reliable bridge from defense to offense.
Yannik Oettl was tabbed as the Goalkeeper of the Year for The American and has now made the All-Conference team in back to back seasons. Oettl has been impressive in his junior campaign, logging over 1500 minutes and seeing 158 shots. He has compiled five shutouts in 2019, bringing his career total to 11 clean sheets. He has posted a 1.17 goals allowed average this season with a .718 save percentage. Those number only improved in league play, with a 1.07 goals allowed average and a .742 save percentage.
Yanis Leerman earns his first trip to the All-Conference First team for his performance this season. Despite tallying just one assist, Leerman was a catalyst in UCF's success all season long. He played over 1300 minutes and made outstanding plays on defense look easy.
Second Team All-Conference
Louis Perez was the lone Knight to earn a spot on The American second team. Perez has put together a remarkable campaign, scoring four goals and registering nine assists, good enough for 17 points which currently ranks second on the team. His nine assists in 2019 places him in a tie for fourth place on UCF's single season assists list, with 12 being the most in program history in a campaign.
All-Rookie Team
Two standout freshmen made The American's All-Rookie Team as both Gino Vivi and Glademir Mendoza received nods to the squad. Vivi was named the conference Rookie of the Year for his outstanding performance in his first season. He netted three game winning goals, all in conference play. In total, he gathered five goals and four assists over the course of the regular season.
Mendoza was unable to find the scoresheet during the regular season, but he did start 14 games for the Knights as a redshirt-freshman. The transfer from New Mexico played in over 1200 minutes and was a rock on defense.
UP NEXT
UCF received a bye in the first round of The American championship tournament as they are the No. 1 seed. They'll face the No. 5 seeded Temple Owls in the semifinals on Wednesday at 7 p.m. The winner will advance to the final of the conference tournament. To visit The American championship tournament central, click here.
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