Four Hawks Earn College Sports Madness Preseason Honors

WEST HARTFORD, Conn. – Four Hawk men's soccer players landed spots on the College Sports Madness America East 2013 Preseason All-Conference Teams as announced by the publication earlier this week. Earning first team honors were attackers Javoni Simms and Anthony Santaga and defender Damion Lowe whileConnor Yeaney, also a defender, was placed on the second team.

Last season, the duo of Simms and Santaga accounted for 16 of Hartford's 22 goals, combining for all seven of the team's game-winning tallies. The reigning America East Rookie of the Year, Simms scored nine times in 2012, tacking on one assist for 19 total points. The postseason accolades continued to pile up for Simms as he was named Third-Team NSCAA All-Region, Third-Team College Soccer News All-Freshman and First-Team All-America East after ranking fourth among conference leaders in points and third in goals.

Santaga, a tri-captain for the upcoming 2013 season, put together an impressive junior campaign after compiling 17 points, second most on the team, on seven goals and a team-best three assists. Netting game-winning goals against Central Connecticut, Massachusetts and Binghamton last season, Santaga grabbed America East All-Conference Second-Team honors while earning a spot on the league's all-academic squad.  

The anchor of the Hawks' back line for the last two seasons, Lowe returns for his junior year after posting successful stints with the Premier Development League and the U20 Jamaica National Team. Also a tri-captain, he was named to the PDL All-League Team while earning All-Conference honors from the organization. During his time with Jamaica, he scored a go-ahead goal against Puerto Rico at the CONCACAF U20 Championships. Lowe finished third on the team in points with seven in 2012, scoring three times and adding an assist.

Since arriving at Hartford, Yeaney has started and played in 38 games, including 17 last season. In 2012, he finished sixth on the squad in scoring with three points after netting one goal and assisting on one other. On the defensive side of the pitch, he helped lead the Hawks to three shutouts.

The Hawks are scheduled to open the regular season on the West Hartford campus on Friday, August 30 at 7 p.m. when they welcome the Holy Cross Crusaders to Al-Marzook Field at Alumni Stadium. Prior to the season debut, Hartford will play a pair of scrimmages, starting with a road date at Fairfield on August 20 (3 p.m.) and wrapping up with a home match on August 24 (7 p.m.) against Southern New Hampshire.