IRVINE, Calif. – Dominican men's soccer coach
David Frank was named the 2022 PacWest Men's Socccer Coach of the Year as announced by the conference office after a vote by his peers. In addition, five Penguins were named All-PacWest, the most in a single season in the programs NCAA Division II history.
The Penguins were voted to finish seventh overall in the preseason vote and overcame all expectations to become the first team at Dominican to claim a PacWest Championship. The Penguins started conference play on a tear winning four straight before a loss to Biola. It rebounded to go on another streak of four straight wins before a disappointing loss to Point Loma Nazarene to end the season. Frank joins Booker Harris and Gary Nelson as the only coaches to earn individual honors at Dominican.
"This award is a team accomplishment," said Frank. "Our whole coaching staff was tremendous this year and they, along with our student-athletes, deserve all the credit in the world. The dedication of all of our staff has been amazing and this is just a small reward for everything they've put into it."
In all, Dominican set a new team best with 12 wins on the season as it ended the year tied with Biola at 24 points.
Brian Sanchez and
Louie Galdamez were both named First Team All-PacWest, with
Aboubacar Cisse earning second team honors and
Jesus Duran and
Eddie Silverbush named to the third team.
Sanchez, a senior midfielder, led the team with seven goals to go with four assists for a total of 18 points on the season while playing in and starting 17 games. Galdamez anchored a back line that limited opponents to 9.9 shots per game and a 1.33 goal against average while cashing in on a header against Cal State East Bay for his lone goal of the season. It was the second all-conference honors for Sanchez and Galdamez during their Dominican careers.
Cisse was second in the team behind only Sanchez with four goals while collecting four assists appearing in all 18 games for the Penguins this season. Duran made an immediate impact as a newcomer in 2022 scoring three goals and leading the team with five assists on his way to earn his first all-conference honors. Silverbush overcame an early injury and continued to provide whatever his team needed over the final 12 games as he scored 1 goal and collected two assists. This marks the third time Silverbush has been named All-PacWest.
"I'm super proud to have a number of our guys recognized for their accomplishments this season," Frank said. "Our entire team has been tremendous all year long, dealing with adversity, mistakes, injuries, and anything thrown at them. And it's just really great to see some of them rewarded for all their hard work and dedication to the team. It's such a good example of when a team starts to come together and find success, the individual accolades start to follow. It's not that players set out to achieve those accolades, but it sure is nice to get a little recognition every once in awhile. These guys all deserve it and I couldn't be happier for them and our entire team for what they've accomplished this season."
