ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – Chris Wehan and Ben McKendry were both named to the All-Conference USA first team the league office announced Tuesday. They are joined by Mathew Gibbons, Nick Miele and James Rogers on the second team and Niko Hansen on the third team.
“All six players are well deserving of this recognition,” UNM head coach Jeremy Fishbein said, “but I think other players were also deserving of all-conference honors. Any individual success our players receive is a credit to the whole team.”
A redshirt sophomore out of Laguna Niguel, Calif., Wehan leads the Lobos in numerous offensive categories from his wide midfield position. He has nine goals and 20 points on 20 shots on goal, and three of his goals have been game-winners. He was named to the College Soccer News National Team of the Week on Oct. 27 after scoring two goals in a 4-0 win over Old Dominion. Last season he was named C-USA Freshman of the Year.
McKendry, a junior from Vancouver, British Columbia, hasn’t lit up the scoreboard like Wehan, but he has been just as effective in his role in the central midfield. He has two goals and two assists and has been a dynamic playmaker for the Lobos all season. He was named the Tournament MVP of the TLC Plumbing & Utility Invitational earlier this season and leads all Lobo midfielders in minutes this year. He also earned First Team All-C-USA honors last season.
Gibbons is a senior from Rotorua, New Zealand, and he has been one of the most steady defenders in program history. He is fourth all-time at UNM with 79 starts, and he has played 7,058 minutes, which is fifth most in the history of the program. He has two assists this season, including one on UNM’s game-tying goal against No. 1 UCLA on Sept. 7. This is the second straight season he has earned Second Team All-C-USA
Miele, meanwhile, is also a senior defender, and he has played every minute of every game for the Lobos at center back this year. He was named Defensive MVP of the TLC Plumbing & Utility Invitational earlier this season and scored his first career goal in a 1-1 draw with Drexel on Sept. 19.
The third senior honored for UNM is Rogers, who is a native of Sierra Leone. He is tied for second on the team in points with 13, leads the squad with five assists, and he is third with four goals. Like Gibbons, he is also one of the top players in program history. He is tied for eighth all-time with 22 goals, while his 20 assists are fourth most, his 64 points are eighth most, his 176 shots are fifth most, and his 72 starts are tied for ninth in UNM history. He was named to Conference USA’s third team as a junior last season.
Hansen, a sophomore from Sacramento, Calif., is tied with Rogers for second on the club with 13 points. He is second with five goals and tied for second with three assists. He was named both C-USA and College Sports Madness Offensive Player of the Week on Oct. 6 after scoring game-winning goals against both West Virginia and Florida International. He was a member of the All-Frsehman Team for Conference USA last season.
UNM heads to Norfolk, Va., for the Conference USA Tournament beginning on Wednesday. The Lobos will face the host Old Dominion Monarchs at 5 p.m. MT, and the match will be streamed live on the C-USA Digital Network here.