MELE NAMED NJAC GOALKEEPER OF THE YEAR; RED HAWKS LAND SIX ON ALL-NJAC TEAM

Montclair, NJ (11/6/07) – Junior goalkeeper Nick Mele (Delran, NJ / Delran) was named the Goalkeeper of the Year as the back-to-back NJAC champion Red Hawks placed six players on the 2007 All-Conference Team announced on Tuesday.

Junior forward Tyler Masterson (Long Valley, NJ / West Morris Central) and sophomore midfielder John Esposito (Hillside, NJ / Hillside) were chosen to the First Team. Senior mdfielder Owen Nichols (Princeton, NJ / Princeton), junior defender Eric Pfeifer (Wyckoff, NJ / Ramapo) and sophomore midfielder Joe Cullen (Clementon, NJ / Highland Regional) were named to the Second Team as all six played an key role in helping the Red Hawks capture their eighth NJAC title last Saturday as MSU downed top-seeded New Jersey City, 1-0.

The win gave Montclair back-to-back conference titles for the first time since 1971-72 and also put the Red Hawks into the NCAA Division III Tournament for the second straight year, something it had not done since 1991-92.

Mele followed up his outstanding sophomore season with a brilliant junior campaign as he earns his first All-Conference selection. Mele, a three-time NJAC Defensive Player of the Week selection during the season, currently leads the NJAC in goals against average (0.47), save percentage (.894) and shutouts (13) while ranking sixth in saves with 75. Mele's 17 victories and 13 shutouts tie him with Jim Stahll (1988) for the single-season marks and he moved into third-place on the career list with 33 career wins.

Masterson collects his second All-NJAC honor in as many seasons as he moves up from a Second-Team pick in 2006 to First-Team this year. The team-leader with 12 goals and 28 points, Masterson is tied for second in the league in goals scored and fourth in points while tying for the conference lead in game-winning tallies with five.

Esposito was named to his first All-Conference team. The sophomore appeared in all 20 games this season and had five goals and five assists. Ranked third in the NJAC in game-winning goals with four, Esposito recorded the assist on the game-winning goal in the NJAC Championship Game.

Pfeifer was was named All-NJAC for the second consecutive year and is an integral part of a Montclair State dfensive unit that has allowed just nine goals this season while posting a school-record 15 shutouts.

Cullen has scored twice this season and added five assists while Nichols leads the team in assists (7) and is third on the squad with 15 points.