For the second time in three seasons, the Ivy League men’s soccer awards are painted Red and Blue.
On Wednesday, the Ancient Eight announced its major conference honors as well as the All-Ivy teams, with Penn well-represented after completing a 7-0 conference campaign. Senior defender Leo Burney brought home Defensive Player of the Year, while senior striker Stas Korzeniowski won co-Offensive Player of the Year and coach Brian Gill was named Coach of the Year. It was the second time the trio won those respective awards, with the other coming in 2022 following the Quakers’ title-winning campaign.
"I am super happy and honored to receive the award," Korzeniowski said. "I couldn't have done it without the support of my teammates, coaches, and family. I look forward to this weekend and hopefully earning more days with this special group of guys."
Burney and Korzeniowski were both named as unanimous selections to the All-Ivy first team. Joining them on the first team is sophomore midfielder Jack-Ryan Jeremiah. Sophomore goalkeeper Phillip Falcon III, senior midfielder Aaron Messer, and sophomore defender Connor Dawson were named to the second team, while senior forward Brandon Curran, senior defender Ben Do, and junior midfielder Patrick Cayelli earned honorable mention nods.
It was Burney’s fourth first team selection in his fourth collegiate season. Burney was also named to the 2024 Ivy League Men’s Soccer Academic All-Ivy team as the selection from Penn. This season, he was the main cog in a Quaker front that allowed an Ivy League low 0.69 goals per game and 0.57 goals in Ivy play.
He also led a defense that had nine clean sheets — two of which came in conference play. At the midpoint of the season, he was named eighth on the Top Drawer Award watch list, an honor given to the best players in Division I soccer. Burney also scored three goals this season, making him the team’s second leading goal-scorer from the defender position.
It is also Krozeniowski’s fourth All-Ivy selection although just his second to the first team. His first nod came after his breakout sophomore season where he tallied 11 goals and seven assists. This year, the senior goal scorer topped the performance, finishing the season with 12 goals to lead the team with five of those being game-winners. Korzeniowski shares this year’s honor with Cornell forward Alex Harris.
In his sixth season at the helm, Gill has led the Quakers to their third straight Ivy League regular season crown. The 7-0 record in Ivy League play is also the first in the conference since Princeton’s undefeated run in 2021. The season was highlighted by a four game win streak to open up the season that included an upset of then-No. 3 Pitt.
By winning the conference, the Red and Blue will play host to the second-ever Ivy League Tournament. Last year, they were knocked out prematurely after a heartbreaking penalty shootout loss in the semifinals to Brown.
This year, Penn men’s soccer will get its chance at redemption as it will open up post-season play on Friday, Nov. 15 at 3 p.m. against Brown in the semifinals.
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