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San Diego State's Nick Cardenas Named Pac-10 Freshman of the Year
Nov. 9, 2006 WALNUT CREEK, Calif. - San Diego State's Nick Cardenas (Thornton, Colo./Horizon HS) and senior Tally Hall (Gig Harbor, Wash./Gig Harbor HS) headed a group of seven Aztecs who were honored by the Pac-10 on Wednesday afternoon. Cardenas was named the Pac-10 Freshman of the Year while Hall was selected first-team all-Pac-10 for the second consecutive season. Senior Raul Bautista (Salida, Calif./Grace Davis HS) joined Cardenas as second-team selections, while senior Andrew DiCicco (Wethersfield, Conn./Wethersfield HS), junior Kraig Chiles (San Diego/Poway HS) and sophomores Danny Ortiz (Palmdale, Calif./Highland HS) and Dennis Sanchez (Redmond, Wash./Bishop Manogue HS) each earned honorable mention accolades. Cardenas, a defender, who was named to the Top Soccer Drawer All-Rookie Team on Wednesday, is tied for the team lead with six goals and is third on the squad with 12 points. Cardenas, who was called up to the U.S. U-20 National Team Camp earlier this season, has already received numerous accolades in his first season on Montezuma Mesa, including being named the NSCAA National Player of the Week on Nov. 1. In addition, Cardenas was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week (Oct. 31) and was also selected to the Soccer America Team of the Week (Nov. 1), College Soccer News National Team of the Week (Oct. 30) and to The Soccer Post/Aztec Classic all-tournament team. Hall, who earlier in the day was named to the list of 15 semifinalists for the 2006 M.A.C. Hermann Trophy, is 9-4-4 with a 0.99 goals against average and 79.8 shots-on-goal save percentage. In Pac-10 play, Hall was even better, going 5-1-3 and leading the conference in shutouts (four), goals against average (0.72) and shots-on-goal save percentage (0.72). Hall, an All-America selection by three publications last season and preseason All-America selection by College Soccer News, was named Co-Most Valuable Player of The Soccer Post/Aztec Classic and later garnered all-tournament accolades at the USD/San Diego State Soccer Classic. On Sept. 26, he was named the Pac-10 Player of the Week for the first time in his career and on Oct. 2 he was selected to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week. Bautista, a tri-captain, has started all 15 games he has appeared in this season and is tied for fifth on the squad with six points on two goals and two assists. Bautista, who has earned head coach Lev Kirshner's Man of the Match honors a team-high five times this season, was named Pac-10 Player of the Week on Oct. 3. He received Soccer America Team of the Week honors on Oct. 4 and was named to the USD/San Diego State Soccer Classic All-Tournament team in September. Chiles, a second-team All-Pac-10 selection last season, leads the team in scoring with 16 points and ranks third in the Pac-10 in game-winning goals (three), fifth in shots (42), fifth in goals (six) and is eighth in assists (four). He is also a perfect 3-for-3 in penalty kick attempts. Chiles was named to The Soccer Post/Aztec Classic All-Tournament Team on Aug. 27 and earned Man of the Match accolades for his two-goal, one-assist performance in San Diego State's 2-1 victory over UNLV on Sept. 9. DiCicco, who is playing his first season as a forward after playing his previous three in the midfield, is second on the squad in points (14) and goals (five), and is tied for first with his four assists. The 14 points and five goals have DiCicco ranked ninth in the Pac-10 in both categories, while his four assists are eighth in the conference. Coming into his senior season, DiCicco had only one goal and three assists for five points. Ortiz and Sanchez have played solid throughout the season as the team's outside backs. Ortiz has started 17 of the 18 games he has appeared in, with his only non-start coming in last Sunday's game against Stanford when six seniors started in their final home match. Sanchez, one of two San Diego State student-athletes to start all 18 matches, is fourth on the squad with three assists. The Aztecs, who are ranked No. 30 in the latest College Soccer News poll, will play at No. 17 UC Santa Barbara on Saturday afternoon (1 p.m.) in the first round of the NCAA tournament.
2006 All-Pac 10
Second Team
Honorable-Mention (received votes):
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