Five Lobos garner All-Conference USA acclaim
IRVING, Texas – A day ahead of the beginning of the Conference USA Tournament, five University of New Mexico men’s soccer players earned All-Conference USA plaudits as it was announced by the league office on Tuesday.
Representing UNM as all-conference honorees were Tom Smart, Nick Taylor, Billy Jones, Omar Grey, and Erik Virgen. Smart was named to the first team and Taylor to the second team. Jones and Grey were third team selections, while Virgen was named to the All-Freshman team along with Grey.
Smart and Jones are returners to the All-C-USA team as Smart was second team recipient and Jones on the All-Freshman team a year ago. Taylor, Grey and Virgen are all receiving their first all-conference acclaim.
For Smart, this is also the third-straight season he has earned postseason conference honors as he was a second team honoree each of the last two years. Prior to the beginning of his junior season, Smart was also named to the C-USA Preseason Team.
In his junior campaign Smart has once more been an anchor not only of the Lobo defense, but the team as a whole, serving as one of two captains for the Lobos. In addition to his defensive prowess, Smart has also factored offensively as he leads the team in assists with six. His assist total also is tied for the fourth-most in C-USA.
Playing and starting in all 16 games thus far, Smart has logged 1,434 total minutes on the pitch and has played the entirety of the game all but once. For his career, Smart has played and started in 53 games and logged over 4,800 minutes.
Taylor, a native of Coppell, Texas, earned second team honors thanks to a breakout offensive season as a sophomore. In his freshman campaign, Taylor totaled five points on a pair of goals and one assist. This season, Taylor has scored four goals and dished out five assists to total 13 points.
His point total leads the team and is tied for ninth in the league, while his assists are tied for seventh-most.
Jones, a sophomore from Auckland, New Zealand, received third team honors as a defender. A fixture on the Lobos’ backline, Jones has played and started in all 16 games and logged 1,469 minutes. Jones has also contributed offensively with a goal and an assist this season. Both were the first of his career. The goal came in a 2-0 win over Florida Atlantic, while the assist came at FIU.
Grey, the Lobos’ leading goal scorer, made third team in his rookie campaign and also was named to the All-Freshman team. A native of Seattle, Washington, Grey has been an offensive spark for the Lobos off the bench. Having not started a game this season, Grey’s goals have all been in relief duty.
In his first career game, Grey found the back of the net against Seattle University. Three games later, Grey scored on the road at Cal State Fullerton to begin what was a four-match scoring streak with subsequent goals against Tulsa, UC Santa Barbara, and Old Dominion.
Grey’s five goals currently rank in a tie for ninth in C-USA.
Virgen joins Grey on the All-Freshman Team after the Sandy, Utah native emerged as a starter in the second half of the season for the Lobos. After coming off the bench in the first seven games of the season, Virgen earned his first starting nod at Florida Atlantic. He then went on to start the final eight games of the regular season.
The Lobos are set to begin Conference USA Tournament play on Wednesday, Nov. 7 against Old Dominion at 2:30 p.m. MT.