Four Cavaliers Earn VaSID All-State Soccer Honors; Span Named Freshman of the Year

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CHARLOTTESVILLE – Senior goalkeeper Diego Restrepo (West Palm Beach, Fla.), junior forward Brian Ownby (Glen Allen, Va.), sophomore forward Will Bates (Chester, Va.) and freshman forward/midfielder Brian ‘Cobi’ Span (Somers, N.Y.) were all named to the 2010 Virginia Sports Information Directors (VaSID) Men’s Soccer All-State second team. Additionally, Span was tabbed VaSID’s Rookie of the Year.

Span finished his first season as a Cavalier with five goals and three assists. He was selected to the Atlantic Coast Conference’s all-freshman team and was ranked by TopDrawerSoccer as the fourth-best freshman in the country. It marks the second-consecutive season that a Virginia rookie was named Freshman of the Year by VaSID (Will Bates in 2009).

Restrepo, the Cavaliers’ starting goalkeeper for the past two seasons, signed a contract to play professional soccer for Colombia’s America de Cali after the 2010 season. Prior to the 2010 season, Restrepo was named a College Soccer News and Soccer America preseason All-American. The Cavaliers earned a berth to the NCAA Tournament for the 30th-consecutive season in 2010 and Restrepo posted eight shutouts. He was the 2009 NCAA College Cup’s Defensive Most Valuable Player and the 2009 ACC Tournament Most Valuable Player after the Cavaliers won the NCAA and ACC Championships that year. Restrepo was the 2009 VaSID State Player of the Year.

Bates finished 2010 as the Cavaliers’ leading scorer with eight goals and four assists. He also scored a team-high three game-winning goals. This is Bates’ third VaSID all-state honor, as he was named to the first team in 2009 in addition to being named the Freshman of the Year.

Ownby scored seven goals and added three assists for UVa in 2010. He scored two game-winning goals and was named to the All-ACC first team, becoming the first Cavalier named to the all-conference first team since Yannick Reyering in 2007. This is Ownby’s first VaSID all-state honor.

2010 VaSID Men’s Soccer University Division Awards

Player of the Year – C.J. Sapong, F (James Madison)
Rookie of the Year – Brian Span, F (Virginia)
Coach of the Year – Chris Norris (William & Mary)

VaSID All-State First Team
F – Darren Amoo, Liberty
F – Iyiola Awosika, Radford
F – Alan Koger, William & Mary
MF – Phillip Aseweh, Liberty
MF – Nathaniel Baako, William & Mary
MF – Chris Harmon, Old Dominion
D – Uriah Bentick, Liberty
D – Derek Buckley, William & Mary
D – James Leith, Radford
GK – Evan Newton, Old Dominion

VaSID All-State Second Team
F – Will Bates, Virginia
F – Brian Ownby, Virginia
F – Brian Span, Virginia
MF – Harvey Headley, Longwood
MF – Jordan LeBlanc, Old Dominion
MF – Paul Wyatt, James Madison
D – Michael DiNuzzo, William & Mary
D – Shane Johnson, Longwood
D – Patrick McDaniel, Longwood
GK – Andrew McAdams, William & Mary
GK – Diego Restrepo, Virginia