DAVIS, Calif. – UC Davis sophomore forward
Maximilian Arfsten was named the Big West Conference Offensive Player of the Year, while senior teammate
Robert Mejia was named the league's midfielder of the year, headlining the list of Aggies on the 2021 All-Big West honor roll as voted on by the conference's head coaches released on Friday afternoon.
Joining Arfsten and Mejia on the 13-member first team was senior defender
Jake Haupt, while junior defender
Max Glasser was named to the all-conference second team. Senior forward
Grant Fidler picked up honorable mention all-conference honors, as did senior midfielder
Andy Velasquez. Newcomer
Turner Humphrey was named to the all-freshman team to round out the group of UC Davis honorees.
Arfsten becomes the second Aggie to be named the league's top offensive player, joining All-America selection Quincy Amarikwa in 2008, while Mejia became the first UC Davis player to win top midfielder honors since the award was established in 2004. The duo also picked up their first career all-league awards, while Haupt was named to the first team for the first time in his career after making the second team in 2019.
Glasser and Velasquez, meanwhile, earned their second career all-conference nods after being named to the honorable mention and second team squads in 2019, while Humphrey became the ninth Aggie named to the all-freshman squad since 2013, joining the likes of Dash MacNamara, Miguel Acevedo, Evan Barrett, Roy Boateng,
Nabi Kibunguchy, Mejia, Velasquez, and Arfsten.
UC Davis finished the 2021 season with a 9-10-1 overall record and a 4-4-1 mark in Big West play, advancing to the semifinals of the league tournament for the ninth time in program history and qualified for the conference's postseason event for the 10th consecutive year.
2021 ALL-BIG WEST CONFERENCE MEN'S SOCCER TEAMS
Offensive Player of the Year: Maximilian Arfsten, UC Davis
Midfielder of the Year: Robert Mejia, UC Davis
Defensive Player of the Year: Henry Davies, UC Santa Barbara
Goalkeeper of the Year: Gordon Botterill, UC Irvine
Freshman of the Year: Francesco Montanile, UC Irvine
Coach of the Year: Yossi Raz, UC Irvine
First Team
Giovanni Aguilar, Gr., M, CSUN, Olivehurst, Calif.
Maximilian Arfsten, So., F, UC Davis, Fresno, Calif.
Thaabit Baartman, Jr., M, UC Santa Barbara, Bonteheuwel, South Africa
Finn Ballard McBride, So., F, UC Santa Barbara, Sydney, Australia
Gordon Botterill, Gr., GK, UC Irvine, Luzern, Switzerland
Ashish Chattha, Jr., M, UC Irvine, Fremont, Calif.
Henry Davies, Jr., D, UC Santa Barbara, Springwood, Australia
William Gillingham, Sr., D, UC Santa Barbara, Auckland, New Zealand
Jake Haupt, Sr., D, UC Davis, San Diego, Calif.
Robert Mejia, Sr., M, UC Davis, Denair, Calif.
Ameyawu Muntari, Sr., F, UC Santa Barbara, Accra, Ghana
Freymar Omarsson, Jr., D, UC Riverside, Garðabær, Iceland
Oscar Penate, Jr., F, UC Riverside, Watts, Calif.
Second Team
Salvador Aguilar, Fr., F, UC Santa Barbara, San Simeon, Calif.
Carlos Arce-Hurtado, Sr., GK, Cal Poly, Tijuana, Mexico
Carlos Armendariz, Jr., M, CSU Bakersfield, San Francisco, Calif.
Neil Boyal, Sr., M, Cal Poly, Olympia, Wash.
Sam Fletcher, Jr., M, UC Santa Barbara, Phoenix, Ariz.
Andrew Forth, Sr., D, Cal Poly, Lake Mary, Fla.
Max Glasser, Jr., D, UC Davis, Novato, Calif.
Leopoldo Hernandez, Jr., M, UC Riverside, Sacramento, Calif.
Francesco Montanile, Fr., F, UC Irvine, Phoenix, Ariz.
Emmanuel Perez, Sr., F, Cal Poly, Boynton Beach, Fla.
Mathias Winum, Fr., D, UC Irvine, Trondheim, Norway
Leroy Zeller, So., GK, UC Santa Barbara, Zülpich, Germany
Honorable Mention
Forwards - Grant Fidler (Sr., UC Davis), Aodhan O'Hara (Sr., CSU Bakersfield), Titus Washington (So., Sacramento State);
Midfielders - Beto Alvarenga (Jr., UC Irvine), Sebastian Cruz (So., Cal State Fullerton),
Andy Velasquez (Sr., UC Davis);
Defenders - Josh Graham (Sr., Cal Poly), Ricardo Ibarra (So., UC Irvine), Jaime Robles (So., Sacramento State), Jonick Pineda (Sr., UC Riverside).
All-Freshman Team
Salvador Aguilar (UC Santa Barbara), Max Carvalho (UC San Diego), Jacob Glass (Cal Poly), Carlos Gonzalez (UC Riverside), Bryson Hankins (CSU Bakersfield),
Turner Humphrey (UC Davis), Ramses Martinez (UC Santa Barbara), Francesco Montanile (UC Irvine), Jamar Ricketts (CSUN), Jhared Wilcot (Sacramento State), Mathias Winum (UC Irvine).
ABOUT UC DAVIS
Centrally located between San Francisco and Lake Tahoe, over 700 student-athletes across 25 teams enjoy an unrivaled undergraduate experience at the fifth-ranked public school in the country.
Ranked annually in the nation's top 10 in diversity and students' social mobility, UC Davis and its innovative Aggie EVO System helps student-athletes develop passions, connect with a comprehensive network of alums and industry leaders, gain real-world experience, and thrive as a young professional following a successful launch to full-time employment or graduate school.
