BOSTON, MA – On Thursday the Gridiron Club of Greater Boston announced their 38 semifinalists for the 23rd Joe Concannon Award, annually Presented to the best American-born NCAA Division II/III player in New England. In their announcement, three Curry Men's Ice Hockey Players were named finalists.
The first Curry semifinalist is sophomore Gage Dill. The forward from Estero, Florida ranks first on the team in both assists (15) and points (24), while also being second on the team in goals with nine. His points and assists totals both rank third in the CCC.
The Joe Concannon Award was established by the Gridiron Club in 2001 shortly after the passing of the longtime writer for The Boston Globe.
The next semifinalist for the Colonels is senior Tao Ishizuka. The forward from Providence, RI is having a career year. He entered the season with a career total of four goals and five assists, but has surpassed both those totals just this season. He has collected seven goals and 11 assists for a total of 18 points.
The third semifinalist for the Colonels is freshman Shane Soderwall, from Algonquin, IL.. Since taking over the starting goalie position midway through the season, Soderwall has gone on a tear, winning each of his last seven games. On the season he has posted an 11-2-0 record, with a .953 save percentage to go with a 1.34 goals against average. He leads the CCC in both GAA and save percentage by a wide margin. His GAA is a full .50 better than the second best, while his save percentage is .011 better than second place. Among goalies with at least 750 minutes played, Soderwall ranks third in the country in GAA. He ranks fourth in the country in save percentage.
"This year has seen an incredibly competitive landscape at the DII/DIII level," said Gridiron Club Hockey Awards Committee chairman Tim Costello. A watch-list over eighty outstanding players showcased a large number of outstanding players throughout the season to date which has made this year's group of nominees the most balanced the committee has seen in the history of the ward."
Costello continued, "The 38 semifinalist represent our largest field in the 23-year history of the Concannon Award, and it was a great challenge to reduce the list to that number. We always expect to see the strongest contenders for the award emerge over the final weeks of the regular season, conference championship tournaments and the NCAA title chase in March. The committee will be watching closely to see which players rise to the top for this year's Concannon.
Twenty-five institutions are represented in the slate of candidates that includes five players from the New England Hockey Conference (NEHC), five from the Northeast-10 Conference (NE-10), seven from the Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference (MASCAC), nine from the New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) and ten from the Commonwealth Coast Conference (CCC). Two independent programs, Anna Maria, and Albertus Magnus, also have nominees this season. The list of nominees includes 27 forwards, six defensemen and five goaltenders. Assumption, Curry Endicott, and Trinity have three nominations each.
