GNAC Men's Soccer Report: Week 6

Norwich's Joseph Thongsythavong captured his second straight GNAC Player of the Week honor after a five-point week.

October 11, 2021

( FOR THE WEEK OF OCT. 4 - 10 )

	PLAYER OF THE WEEK *Joseph Thongsythavong, Norwich* (Jr., F - Salem, Mass.) - Thongsythavong stayed red-hot, as the reigning GNAC Player of the Week scored two more goals with an assist, leading Norwich to two one-goal victories and six more crucial GNAC league points. Thongsythavong stretched his scoring streak to five straight games to match Norwich's winning streak of five straight. Thongsythavong scored the game-winning goal in Sunday's 1-0 win over Colby-Sawyer. He now has 29 goals in 30 career games. Norwich's win over USJ also helped solidify the Cadets' hold on a top-three position in the current GNAC standings.
	GOALKEEPER OF THE WEEK *Jacob Friedman, Johnson & Wales (RI)* (Jr., GK - Woodland Hills, Calif.) - Boasting a .857 save percentage for the week, Jacob Friedman led the Wildcats to two conference victories. Against Emmanuel (Mass.) earned a shut out for the Wildcats before saving four shots on target against Elms, earning his second shut out of the week. In a non-conference tilt early in the week against WPI, Friedman made six saves on seven shots faced.
	ROOKIE OF THE WEEK *Mamadi Jiana, Norwich* (Fr., M - Chicopee, Mass.) - In his only game action of the week, Jiana scored twice, including the game-winning goal in a crucial 3-2 win over the Univ. of St. Joseph on Friday to help Norwich strengthen its grip on a top-three spot in the GNAC standings. Jiana has heated up over the last two weeks, stretching his points streak to three straight games with three goals and three assists in the last three games he played to help Norwich extend its winning streak to five straight.

HONOR ROLL

Kelvin Cortez, Albertus Magnus (Jr., M - Meriden, Conn.) - Cortez led the Falcons last week with four points and two goals. The junior midfielder first started against Ramapo College on Wednesday, and was inches away from a goal, as he sent one off the crossbar in the first half a 2-0 Albertus setback. Then, Cortez guided Albertus to a 3-1 road win over Anna Maria on Saturday, scoring two goals to lead AMC to a 6-0-1 record in the GNAC.

Nico Adornetto, Colby-Sawyer (Jr, D) - The junior netted a pair of goals in a 3-2 win against Dean on Saturday.

Lucas Boetsch, Colby-Sawyer (Sr, GK) - The senior stopped 14 of the 17 shots he faced in a 1-1 week, including a 10-save effort in a tough 1-0 loss to Norwich on Sunday.

Santiago Pedraza Novak, Regis (Mass.) (Jr., F - Bogota, Colombia) - Pedraza Novak pressured the opposing defense in both Regis matches over the past week, totaling three assists while registering 12 shots (six on goal). On Monday against Elms, he assisted on all three goals in the 3-0 win, setting up Marcos Rivera twice and Zack Acciardo once as the Pride defeated the Blazers. On Saturday, he continually created scoring chances, accumulating 10 shots, including five shots on goal that threatened to give his team the lead on several occasions. Pedraza Novak now leads the Pride with four assists this season.

Kuma Onyejose, Saint Joseph's (Maine) (Senior, F - East Greenwich, R.I.) - Onyejose scored two goals and added an assist in a 2-0 conference week for the Monks. The senior forward netted a goal in a win over Lasell on Tuesday and tallied a goal and an assist in a victory at Rivier on Saturday.

GNAC WEEKLY ARCHIVE

WEEK	PLAYER	GOALKEEPER	ROOKIE
1	Musa Jiana, ELMS	Bryce Antoch, DEAN	Musa Jiana, ELMS
2	Amerle Nemeye, NOR	Freddie Beckmann, REG	Jacob Freitas, REG
3	DeAnte Anderson, USJ	David Walbridge, SJC	Arian Bobi, AMC
4	Joel Agbetossou, USJ	Vincent Conelli, EMM	Luis Agudelo, AMC
5	Joseph Thongsythavong, NOR	David Walbridge, SJC	Dane Stephens, USJ
6	Joseph Thongsythavong, NOR (2)	Jacob Friedman, JWU	Mamadi Jiana, NOR

The Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) is an NCAA Division III association made up of 14 member institutions and over 3,500 student-athletes across the New England region. Founded in 1995, the GNAC annually sponsors and administers 22 championships, while balancing academic integrity, athletic opportunity and community involvement in an effort to enhance the student-athlete experience.

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