University of North Carolina Athletics
Schuler Named MAC Hermann Trophy Finalist
December 9, 2011 | Men's Soccer
Dec. 9, 2011
ST. LOUIS, Mo. - Redshirt junior forward Billy Schuler was named one of three finalists for the MAC Hermann Trophy on Friday. The Hermann trophy is annually given to the top player in college men's soccer. Schuler leads the Tar Heels with 15 goals and five assists on the year.
Schuler is joined on the final ballot by a familiar foe in Duke's Andrew Wenger along with a fellow College Cup participant in Creighton's Ethan Finlay.
Courtesy of the NSCAA
The trio will be invited to the Missouri Athletic Club in downtown St. Louis on Friday, Jan. 6, for a news conference, where the winner of the award will be revealed (approximately 7 p.m. EST). A banquet at the Club that evening will feature the formal presentation of the prestigious crystal soccer ball trophy to the winner.
Finlay, a senior forward from Marshfield, Wis., has been named the Missouri Valley Conference Player of the Year the past two seasons. He led the league with 14 goals and 34 points this season. His overtime goal against South Florida advanced the Bluejays to their fourth College Cup appearance, their first since 2002. It was his sixth game-winner of the season.
Schuler, a junior forward from Allentown, N.J., ranks among the top 10 goal scorers in the nation, having found the net 15 times this season. He was credited with one of his five assists this season in the Tar Heels' 2-0 win over Saint Mary's in the NCAA quarterfinals. A demonstrated force in clutch situations, he has delivered eight game-winning goals this season, three of which have come in overtime.
Wenger, a junior forward from Lititz, Pa., was named the ACC Offensive Player of the Year one year after earning the league's defensive honor. Moving up top after two seasons as a center back, he demonstrated his attacking prowess by matching Duke's single-season record with 17 goals. The ACC Rookie of the Year in 2009, he is the first Blue Devil since Jay Heaps to be named first-team All-ACC in each of his first three seasons.
The MAC has honored the top player in collegiate soccer since 1986.
