Cory Brown Named BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year

NEW YORK – With the regular season rapidly approaching, men's soccer defender Cory Brown was named the BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year on Wednesday. The junior from Nelson, New Zealand was also a unanimous selection to the preseason All-BIG EAST Team.

Matt Vasquenza, a junior forward, joined Brown on the preseason All-BIG EAST Team – his first career selection.

Brown, who is the program's first BIG EAST preseason player of the year, was chosen preseason All-BIG EAST for a second straight season.

XU has now had six players recognized as preseason all-conference in the last four years. It's the second time XU has had multiple players on the list – Matt Walker and Nick Hagglund both received the honor in 2013.

As a team, the Musketeers were picked fourth in the preseason coaches poll and received a first-place vote for the first time. The ranking is tied for the highest for XU since joining the league. Xavier was picked to finish fourth in 2015, seventh in 2014 and fifth in 2013.

The Musketeers continue preseason action on Saturday, traveling to Maryland for a friendly at 7 p.m. ET.

CORY BROWN

Brown started 18 times for the Musketeers in 2015, finishing fourth on team with 1,572 minutes logged in the backline. He registered two assists on the season and helped the Musketeers record nine shutouts.

Brown was also a linchpin of a defense that registered a team GAA of 0.89, which was the second-lowest mark in program history. One of the top defenders in college soccer, Brown appeared with the New Zealand U-20 team in the World Cup last spring.

For his career, Brown has started 41 matches and scored three goals to go with three assists. As a freshman, he started all 23 matches as XU went on a run to its first-ever NCAA Sweet 16.

MATT VASQUENZA

Vasquenza was Xavier's second-leading scorer in 2015, registering five goals and 11 points. He appeared in 19 matches as a top offensive option at forward, firing 32 shots on the year.

He had two of the biggest goals of the year in back-to-back matches, tallying game-winners against Marquette (10/24) and No. 1 Creighton (10/28). His 89th minute strike against the Bluejays gave XU its first-ever win against an NSCAA No. 1 opponent.

For his career, Vasquenza has played in 42 matches and scored 12 goals to go with seven assists.

As a freshman, he scored a goal in Xavier's 2-1 win over No. 5 Indiana in the second round of the NCAA Tournament. The victory put XU in the NCAA Tournament Third Round for the first time.

PRESEASON COACHES POLL

First place votes in ( )

1. Creighton – 74 pts. (5)
2. Georgetown – 71 pts. (2)
3. Providence – 64 pts. (2)
4. Xavier – 58 pts. (1)
5. Butler – 56 pts.
6. Villanova – 39 pts.
T7. Marquette – 28 pts.
T7. St. John's – 28 pts.
9. DePaul – 22 pts.
10. Seton Hall – 10 pts.

PRESEASON HONORS

OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Mac Steeves, Providence, Sr., F

DEFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Cory Brown, Xavier, Jr., D

GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR
JT Marcinkowski, Georgetown, So.

PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST TEAM

David Goldsmith, Butler, Sr., F ^
Mac Steeves, Providence, Sr., F ^
Matt Vasquenza, Xavier, Jr., F
Julian Gressel, Providence, Sr., M
Arun Basuljevic, Georgetown, Jr., M
Ricardo Perez, Creighton, Sr., M
Dominic Machado, Providence, Sr., M
Simon Megally, DePaul, Sr., M
Cory Brown, Xavier, Jr., D ^
Lucas Stauffer, Creighton, Jr., D
John Pothast, Marquette, Sr., D
JT Marcinkowski, Georgetown, So., GK

^ - denotes unanimous selection
# there is an extra player on the preseason All-BIG EAST team due to a tie in voting

PRESEASON ALL-BIG EAST SELECTIONS

YEAR	NAME
2013	Matt Walker, Nick Hagglund
2014	Will Walker
2015	Cory Brown
2016	Cory Brown, Matt Vasquenza

AMONG THE NATION'S BEST

· Xavier men's soccer has reached the NCAA Tournament in four of the last six seasons and is poised for another strong run in 2016.
· The Musketeers finished 2015 at 12-6-1 overall, marking a sixth straight season with at least 10 wins – one of just 12 programs that can claim the feat.
· Last fall also marked Xavier's third straight finish in the top-four of the BIG EAST.
· XU was ranked in the nation's top-10 by the NSCAA for the third time in four years, while knocking of the national No. 1 (Creighton) and No. 2 (Notre Dame) on the road last season. The Musketeers are widely believed to be the first program to ever knock off both a No. 1 and a No. 2 on the road in the same season.

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