Southern Conference Men's Soccer Postseason Awards Announced

SPARTANBURG, SC – Regular season champion and nationally-ranked Furman swept the Southern Conference's four individual men's soccer postseason awards Thursday and landed eight men on the 2025 All-SoCon teams.

Midfielder Diego Hernandez (Mesquite, TX) was named Player of the Year, Ivan Horvat (Bratislava, Slovakia) was named Goalkeeper of the Year, defender Braden Dunham (Peachtree City, GA) was named Freshman of the Year, and Doug Allison (Bath, England) was named Coach of the Year after a stellar regular season for the Paladins.

The conference's six head coaches voted on the All-Conference first and second teams, an All-Freshman team, and the four individual awards. The coaches are not allowed to vote for candidates from their own team.

Each All-SoCon unit consists of three forwards, three midfielders, three defenders, a goalkeeper, and the player with the next-highest number of votes, regardless of position. The 11-man SoCon All-Freshman Team is positionless.

Furman and UNC Greensboro each had eight selections on the All-SoCon team, with the Paladins leading the way with five first-team members. Mercer (4), Wofford (3), and ETSU (1) also had players on the All-SoCon first or second team.

Hernandez scored 24 points during the regular season, tied atop the SoCon stat sheet, and led the league with eight assists. His efforts earned slots on the Hermann Award Midseason Watch List and the Top Drawer Soccer Player of the Year Leaderboard. Three of his eight goals scored were game winners. He recorded two braces this season and logged a season-high two assists in a SoCon win over ETSU on October 11.

Horvat answered the call in his first season between the posts, recording five shutouts and a SoCon-best 0.77 goals against average among regulars. He led the SoCon in save percentage (81.0%) and forged an 11-1-3 record in goal. Three of his shutouts came against nationally-ranked teams, with scoreless draws against No. 9 San Diego and No. 5 Virginia Tech – and a 2-0 win over UNC Greensboro in a critical SoCon showdown on October 25. He earned SoCon Defensive Player of the Week honors three times during the regular season.

Dunham starred for a Furman backline that held opponents to just 14 goals on the season, the best mark in the SoCon. He saw action in 17 matches (all starts) and made his presence felt on the offensive end as well, scoring four goals to go with two assists. He netted all four goals over a three-match stretch that saw Furman post a 2-0-1 mark. Defensively, Dunham was a key part of seven shutouts by the Paladins and six matches in which Furman allowed only one goal. Against nationally ranked opponents this season, Dunham and the Paladins' defense allowed only two goals. Furman was 2-0-3 in those matches.

Allison, who is in his 31st and final season in charge of the Furman program, won his 10th SoCon Coach of the Year award. His team earned preseason national recognition in the polls and remained a fixture in the top 25 despite playing one of the most challenging schedules in program history. The Paladins (12-1-4) finished with the program's highest regular-season win total since posting 13 victories in 2018. Allison has 361 career wins, which ranks in the top 25 nationally among active coaches. The Paladins reached No. 5 in the Top Drawer Soccer national poll this week.

UNC Greensboro had three of its eight choices earn first-team honors, with forward Enzo Dovlo (Paris, France), joined by midfielder Julien Le Bourdoulous (Quemperven, France) and defender Sami Lachekar (Metz, France). Mercer forward Junior Casillas (Lexington, NE) earned first-team honors along with defender Eli Bannister (Fayetteville, GA), and Wofford was represented on the first team by midfielder Kalle Rahbek (Odense, Denmark).

The 2025 SoCon Men's Soccer Championship gets underway on Friday, with quarterfinal matches set for Greenville, SC, and Macon, GA. An afternoon tilt in Greenville features No. 4 ETSU vs. No. 5 Wofford, with the winner advancing to face top-seeded Furman on Sunday afternoon. Also on Friday night, No. 3 UNC Greensboro will take on No. 6 VMI in Macon, with that winner advancing to face No. 2 Mercer on Sunday night at 7:00. A complete bracket and ticket links for both venues are available on the  SoConSports.com Championship page .

SoCon Player of the Year: Diego Hernandez (Furman), Jr., MF, Mesquite, TX

SoCon Goalkeeper of the Year: Ivan Horvat (Furman), R-Fr., GK, Bratislava, Slovakia

SoCon Freshman of the Year: Braden Dunham (Furman), Fr., D, Peachtree City, GA

SoCon Coach of the Year: Doug Allison (Furman), 31st Season, Bath, England

All-SoCon First Team

F – Enzo Dovlo (UNCG), Jr., Paris, France

F – Wilfer Bustamante (Furman), So., Greenville, SC

F – Junior Casillas (Mercer), Gr., Lexington, NE

M – Diego Hernandez (Furman), Jr., Mesquite, TX

M – Luke Hutzell (Furman), So., Dacula, GA

M – Julien Le Bourdoulous (UNCG), Gr., Quemperven, France

M – Kalle Rahbek (Wofford), So., Odense, Denmark

D – Braden Dunham (Furman), Fr., Peachtree City, GA

D – Sami Lachekar (UNCG), Sr., Metz, France

D – Eli Bannister (Mercer), Fr., Fayetteville, GA

GK – Ivan Horvat (Furman), R-Fr., Bratislava, Slovakia

All-SoCon Second Team

F – Nathan Simes (Wofford), Sr., Wellington, New Zealand

F – Arnaud Tattevin (UNCG), Sr., Rennes, France

F – Ryan Reid (Furman), R-Fr., Overland Park, KS

F – Steven Hernandez (UNCG), R-Jr., Winston-Salem, NC

M – Jaime Carrillo (ETSU), Amarillo, TX

M – Fernando Arteaga (Mercer), Sr., Jonesboro, GA

M – Issah Haruna (UNCG), So., Bolgatanga, Ghana

D – Jakob Andersson (Wofford), Sr., Stockholm, Sweden

D – Ryan Wagner (Furman), So., Leawood, KS

D – Kimito Fritz (UNCG), Sr., Tokyo, Japan

D – Connor Stout (Furman), Fr., Fairfax, VA

GK – Seth Wilson (UNCG), R-Jr., Frisco, TX

GK – Henry Hampshaw (Mercer), So., Holmfirth, England

SoCon All-Freshman Team

Braden Dunham (Furman), Fr., D, Peachtree City, GA

Eli Bannister (Mercer), Fr., D, Fayetteville, GA

Ryan Reid (Furman), R-Fr., F, Overland Park, KS

Ivan Horvat (Furman), R-Fr., GK, Bratislava, Slovakia

Connor Stout (Furman), Fr., D, Fairfax, VA

Sam Byron (Wofford), Fr., Ooltewah, TN

Will Taylor (Mercer), Fr., MF, Lawrenceville, GA

Emil Holmberg (ETSU), Fr., GK, Norrkoping, Sweden

Trym Linberg (UNCG), Fr., Bærumsverk, Norway

Manza Masamuna (Mercer), Fr., MF, Lawrenceville, GA

Luke Munson (Furman), Fr., D, Little Elm, TX