By FHSU SPORTS INFORMATION
RUSSELLVILLE, Ark. – Fort Hays State Men’s Soccer had nine players named to the 2021 All-GAC/MIAA Team, released on Thursday evening (Nov. 11). Taisei Arima is the GAC/MIAA Offensive Player of the Year, while Alec Bevis is the GAC/MIAA Defender of the Year. They join Blake Arndt, Kieran Brown, and Viktor Robertsson as First Team selections, while Antonio De La Torre and Haruya Iwasaki earned Second Team and Ethan Doud and Jonathan Gammelvind were Honorable Mentions.
Aside from the being the conference’s top defender, Alec Bevis also collected Distinguished Scholar Athlete Honors which goes to an individual with a GPA of at least 3.7, has at least 70 hours of college credit, and is competing at the GAC/MIAA Tournament Championship site. Only five players at the championship site meet the criteria this year.
Arima, a sophomore forward from Machida, Japan, is the conference’s Offensive Player of the Year, finishing the regular season tied with teammate Blake Arndt for the conference lead in points generated. Arima had eight goals and a team-leading five assists during the regular season, generating 21 points. After a slow start in non-conference play, Arima broke out in a big way by generating all 21 of his points during GAC/MIAA play, which covered the last 12 matches of the regular season. Sixteen of his 21 points came during the month of October, all during a stretch of six matches. Arima is now a two-time All-GAC/MIAA selection after earning a Second Team selection as a freshman during the shortened 2020-21 spring season.
Bevis, a senior defender from Wichita, Kansas, is the conference’s Defensive Player of the Year, helping the Tigers to a 0.89 goals against average as a team. Bevis has been a force anchoring the Tigers at center back, shutting down numerous offensive chances for opponents. He has played 1,557 minutes this year and even provided a goal in a home win over Newman University earlier this season. He helped the Tigers post six shutouts as a team during the regular season. Bevis is now a three-time All-GAC/MIAA selection, twice as first team and once as honorable mention. He was the GAC/MIAA Freshman of the Year in 2019, while garnering all-region honors as well.
Arndt, a junior forward from Wichita, Kansas, earns the second All-GAC/MIAA First Team selection of his career. He earned the same distinction back in the shortened spring season of 2020-21, while garnering Offensive Player of the Year and Newcomer of the Year honors. Arndt tied Arima for the team lead in points during the regular season with 21, producing nine goals and three assists. He led the GAC/MIAA in goals during the regular season. He has three game-winning goals to his credit this season.
Brown, a junior goalkeeper from Kettering, Australia, earns a First Team selection at goalkeeper for the second straight season. Brown has a 0.79 goals against average, which leads the MIAA and ranks 16th nationally. His .823 save percentage and 65 saves also lead the conference, ranking 18th nationally in save percentage. Brown has an 11-5-2 record between the pipes this season with six shutouts.
Robertsson, a sophomore midfielder from Kopavogur, Iceland, earns the first all-conference nod of his career at FHSU, receiving a first team selection in the midfield. He has 10 points this season with four goals and two assists, logging 1,379 minutes on the pitch. He also has one game-winning goal to his credit.
De La Torre, a senior from Dodge City, Kansas, picks up a second-straight second-team selection at defender after earning the same honor in the shortened spring 2020-21 season. A key part of the Tigers’ back line, De La Torre is a versatile player that often goes forward on the attack for FHSU. He finished the regular season with 14 points to rank third on the team, generating five goals and four assists. He tallied 12 of his 14 points for the season in conference matches.
Iwasaki, a sophomore from Tokyo, Japan, received second-team honors at defender. He has been integral to the Tiger success this season by playing 1,668 minutes on the back line of defense. He has been the team’s iron man, playing in every possible minute of action this season through 18 matches. He has helped the Tigers to a 0.89 goals against average as a team and six shutouts.
Doud, a sophomore from Wichita, Kansas, received an honorable mention nod in the midfield. He started all 18 contests during the regular season and generated four points with a goal and two assists. This is the first all-conference honor of his career.
Gammelvind, a sophomore from Silkeborg, Denmark, receives and honorable mention selection at defender for a second-straight season. He had one assist during the regular season and helps anchor the Tigers’ defensive unit that allows less than one goal per match.
Fort Hays State has now had the GAC/MIAA Offensive Player of the Year all three seasons since the GAC and MIAA combined to make a conference in men’s soccer. Santiago Agudelo was the Offensive Player of the Year in 2019, and Arndt received the honor in 2020-21. The Tigers have had the Defender of the Year twice as Bevis joins Sergio Villalba, who received the honor back in 2019. In fact, the Tigers have produced a conference player of the year five straight seasons now as Derick Gonzalez was the MIAA Player of the Year in 2017 and Agudelo collected his first of two player of the year awards at FHSU in 2018 as the MIAA Player of the Year.