CHICAGO, IL - Chicago Fire Soccer and the Illinois High School Coaches Association, announced today the 2009 Boys High School Soccer All-State All-Academic Team. This year's first-team of 23 student-athletes was recognized at the Illinois High School Soccer Coaches Association Banquet on Thursday, November 19, at the Diplomat West in Elmhurst, Illinois.
High school soccer coaches from around the state were asked to nominate their senior student-athletes with a grade-point-average of "B" or higher, and who had been involved in at least two other extra-curricular activities. The 2009 All-State All-Academic team represents exceptional students from high schools throughout the state of Illinois. The Chicago Fire is proud to present this award to the most deserving and dedicated student athletes in the state of Illinois.
There were a record number of nominations for the All-Academic Team, and an impressive group of student-athletes was compiled for the first team, second-team and the honorable mention third-team.
Of the 161 applicants, there were 69 valedictorians, 7 students with an ACT score of 35 or more, and 71 students had ACT scores over 30. All of the students were involved in their communities through various activities such as church groups, non-profit organizations, and their schools. A majority of the students were giving back to the game through their roles as either a coach (43 students) or as a referee (69 students).
Each of these student-athletes will be recognized on the field at a Chicago Fire game next season. They will receive a complimentary ticket with the purchase of another ticket. They will also have the opportunity to purchase additional tickets for their friends, family, and teammates at a discounted price.
Forwards:
Matthew Pablo - Glenbard North
Bart Bak - Northridge Prep
Sam Duffield - Marmion Academy
Michael Harvey - Lincoln Way North
Ethan Hoppe - Lincoln Park HS
Midfielders:
Alden Marton - Wheaton Warrenville South
Austin Manierre - Lake Forest HS
Scott Roseberg - Princeton HS
Andrew Glick - Pekin Community HS
Benjamin Stein - Downers Grove North
Jomar Mendoza - West Aurora
Drew Nuding - Rochester
Jacob Abou-Hanna - Dunlap HS
Defenders:
Colin Ringel - Wheaton Warrenville South
Miguel Medina Bravo - Eisenhower
Zachary Forbes - Quincy
Eeshan Talwar - Lake Forest
Ramzi Riadi - Downers Grove South
Ricky Gandhi - Reavis
Brian Carlisle - University of Chicago Lab Schools
Goalkeepers:
Sean Healey - Carl Sandburg
Mike Bednarz - Maine West
Second Team: Nicholas Marshal - Edwardsville HS, Joe Garlinsky - Kaneland HS, Robert Nogle - Antioch Community HS, Brian Amelio - Plainfield South, Christian Holkeboer - Oak Park River Forest, Max Thauer - Lincoln Way North, Thomas Hu - Lockport Township, Neil Connolly - Amos Alonzo Stagg, Tyler Beason - Mattoon, Sebastian Bibat - Grayslake Central, Brian Klazura - Rockford Boylan Catholic, Tyler Boyd- Highland Park, Kevin Munk - Highland Park, Kevin Yoon - Decatur St. Teresa, Peter Riley - Glenbrook South, Harrison Shipp - Lake Forest, Mitchell Post- Lakes Community HS, Matthew Wyatt - Lake Forest, Kevin Wilson - Plainfield North, Adam Wilson - Plainfield North, Tim Rudnichi - Barrington, Nicholas Jones - Evanston Township, Jonathan Sheppard - Evanston Township, Ashok Raife, Evanston Township, William McGuinness - Lyons Township, Eric Ciura - William Fremd, Jason Casler - Lincoln Way East, Anthony John Zefron IV - Geneva, Ryan Mihalko - Downers Grove South, Tommy Ball - Charleston, Aaron Lauresen - Charleston, Faeeg Yousaf - Charleson, Matt Weiss - Downers Grove North, Eric Greve - Maine South, Peter Kumon - Maine South, Markel Szczesnak - Reavis, Trevor Becherer -Freeburg Community, Lukasz Szczesnak - Reavis, Tucker Fields - Rochester, Sean Ryan - Rochester, Connor Ramsey - Rochester, Todd Wilson - Rochester, Alex Nadelman - Stevenson, Nathaniel Helfer - Pleasant Plains, Tommaso Raimondi - Minooka Community, Keegan Balle - Neuqua, Bryan Ciesiullza - Nequa, Matt Parilli - Fenwick
Honorable Mention: Derek Babb - Wheaton Warrenville South, Cassandra Barber - Riverdale District #100, Heath Nicholson - Paw Paw, Nick Schneider - Grayslake Central, Mahir Mameledzija - Niles West, Joe Kosir - Niles West, Alan Polous - Niles West, Gabriel Adams - Rich East, Ryan Molenstra - Painfield South, Nick Skrip - Plainfield South, Joshua Levy - Oak Park River Forest, Thiago Ganancio -Warren Township, Tim Burch - Glenwood, Jack Graves - Glenwood, Eric Green - Somonauk, Mike Madera - St. Laurence, Collin Brettschneider - Marengo Community, Sean Toomey - Marengo Community, Noah Gottfred - Marengo Community, Gabriel Herrera - Marengo Community, Jeremy Niebrugge - Teutopolis, Michael Brummer - Teutopolis, Roberto Canera - Lockport Township, Joshua Canera - Lockport Township, Christian Casanova - Mount Carmel, Josh Jenkins - Peoria Woodruff, Steven Biala - Bolingbrook, William Knight- St. Ignatius, Matthew Kelly - St. Ignatius, Andy DeBoer - Crystal Lake South, Noah Wagemann - Lake Forest, Charles Roberts - Lake Forest, Clayton Pristou - Lake Forest, Kurtis Teskoski - Lake Forest, Mitchell Killough- Danville, Mark Hartman - Alan B Shepard, Chase Salazar - Dunlap, Tyler Bettenhausen - Dunlap, Eric Mauser - Dunlap, Ian Liszewski - Dunlap, Chris Olivera - Illinois Valley Central, Justin Kozar - Plainfield North, Marc Dronin - Barrington, Calvin Casalino - Latin School, Wesley Dempsey - Dixon, Aaqil Khan - Dixon, Garrett Kerr - Dixon, Ryan Riggs - Quincy Notre Dame, Loren Galloway - West Aurora, Brendan Fournie - Gibault Catholic, Andrew Phillips - Gibault Catholic, Geoffrey Vasudevan - William Fremd, Andre Sippy - Antioch Community HS, Robert Murphy - Hampshire, Cal Tondelli - Downers Grove South, Matt LaLonde - Downers Grove South, Anthony Allegretti - Downers Grove South, Michael Stapleton - Downers Grove South, Zack Reneau-Wedeen - University of Chicago Lab Schools, Aaron Petry - Mount Carmel, Chris Meingast - Lyons Township, Jason Coon - Charleston, Jacob Dallas - Charleston, Kashyap Padmaraju - Charleston, Aaron Smith - Charleston, Liridon Zendeli - Charleston, Jack Walsh - Main South, David Bunde - Thornton Fractional South, Robert Shone - St. Charles East, James Howe - Rockford Boylan Catholic, Aaron Haney - Minooka Community, James C. Reed - Saint Charles North, Dan Lilly - Urbana University HS, John Wilger - Geneva Community, Carlos Ferrer- De La Salle, James Hartnett - De La Salle, Nate Jacobson - De La Salle, Robert Harkness - Moline HS, Jorge Antunez- East Aurora, Enrique Garcia - Wheeling High
The Chicago Fire host their 2010 Opening Day at TOYOTA PARK on April 10, 2010 when they face the San Jose Earthquakes. To purchase tickets please call 1-888-MLS-Fire or visit www.chicago-fire.com.
ABOUT CHICAGO FIRE SOCCER
Chicago Fire Soccer was founded on October 8, 1997 as a Major League Soccer expansion team. The Fire won the MLS Cup in its inaugural season in 1998 and was crowned the champion of U.S. Soccer's national tournament, the Lamar Hunt U.S. Open Cup, in 1998, 2000, 2003 and 2006. In June 2006, the Fire moved into its world-class home of TOYOTA PARK, located in Bridgeview, IL.
ABOUT TOYOTA PARK
Located 15 minutes from downtown Chicago and minutes from Midway airport off of I-55 on Harlem Avenue, TOYOTA PARK is the Midwest's preeminent outdoor live entertainment and sporting facility. Opened in 2006, TOYOTA PARK not only serves as the home of the Chicago Fire, but also hosts a variety of sporting events, special events and concerts by national and international artists. In 2009, artists ranging from Jimmy Buffett to Phish are performing live at TOYOTA PARK.
