Season Review: 2018 Michigan Men's Soccer
12/12/2018 12:30:00 PM | Men's Soccer
• Team Captains: Ivo Cerda, Robbie Mertz
• Record: 12-5-4, 4-2-2 Big Ten (Tie-3rd place)
• Big Ten Tournament: Final
• NCAA Tournament: Second Round
The University of Michigan men's soccer team posted another successful season in 2018, going 12-5-4. The Wolverines tied for third in the Big Ten, made a run to the Big Ten Tournament final and received an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament for the second consecutive year.
Team Highlights
• The Wolverines went 12-5-4 in 2018, to secure back-to-back 12-win seasons for the first time in program history. Michigan went 4-2-2 in the Big Ten -- tying for third with Michigan State.
• A 2-1 (OT) win over Maryland in the regular-season finale on Oct. 28 set the stage for a big postseason run, including making it to the Big Ten Tournament final and earning an at-large bid to the NCAA Tournament. It was only the second time in school history that U-M made the NCAA Tournament in back-to-back years (2003-04). The Wolverines went on to play in two lengthy penalty-kick shootouts, beating Princeton in the first round on a snow-covered field in Ann Arbor (11-10 in 14 rounds) before bowing out to Notre Dame in South Bend, Indiana, in the second round (11-10 in 12 rounds).
• The Wolverines were plus-18 in goal differential in 2018 (36 goals for, 18 goals against). Over the last three years, U-M improved it goal differential by 25 (minus-7 in 2016 to plus-18 in 2018). Michigan recorded 108 points (36 goals, 36 assist) in 2018, the fifth-highest total in school history. Additionally, U-M allowed 18 goals, a school record for fewest goals conceded in a single season.
• Following a season-opening loss to Tulsa, U-M went on a nine-match unbeaten streak (8-0-1) from Aug. 27-Oct. 3, matching the longest stretch in program history (2007, 2010).
• This season, 15 players recorded at least one point and 10 players recorded at least one goal.
• U-M went 8-3-2 at U-M Soccer Stadium, the second-highest number of home wins in a single season in program history. In the last two years, U-M is 17-6-3 at home.
Individual Highlights
• Junior Jack Hallahan posted one of the best offensive seasons in recent memory, recording 24 points on eight goals and eight assists. Among his many accolades, Hallahan was a United Soccer Coaches All-American (second team), a semifinalist for the 2018 MAC Hermann Trophy and the 2018 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year. He is the fifth player in program history to reach the 20-point plateau in back-to-back seasons after tallying 25 points in 2017. Among the program's career statistical leaders, Hallahan enters his senior year ranked seventh in points (57) and assists (15), and is eighth in goals (21).
• Senior Robbie Mertz capped a fantastic four-year career in 2018, earning All-Big Ten (first team) and United Soccer Coaches All-North Region (second team) honors. He played in 76 matches (55 starts) over his four-year career, scoring nine goals and issuing 12 assists. A two-year team captain, Mertz started all 21 matches in 2018, tallying two goals and four assists. He was voted one of the 10 finalists for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award.
• The breakout performer of the season was sophomore Umar Farouk Osman, who went from two points as a freshman (both assists) to 24 points as a sophomore (team-best nine goals, four assists). He was an All-Big Ten (second team) choice.
• Senior Marcello Borges spearheaded the defense, receiving All-Big Ten (second team) and United Soccer Coaches All-North Region (third team) honors in 2018.
• Sophomore Henry Mashburn played every minute in net this season, setting school records for fewest goals allowed in a season (18 in 21 matches) and goals-against average for both a single season (0.81) and career (0.95). His best performance of the season came in the opening round of the NCAA Tournament vs. Princeton on Nov. 15; he made five saves and had another four in the 14-round PK shootout.
• Senior Noah Kleedtke stepped into a larger role in 2018, appearing in 20 matches and making 14 starts. By contrast, he played in 12 total matches in 2016 and 2017 combined. He had a knack for scoring goals at pivotal moments; of his four goals, two were equalizers (Oct. 23 at Michigan State; Nov. 15 vs. Princeton -- U-M secured draws in both matches) and one was a game-winner (Oct. 3 at Oakland -- his first career goal).
• Senior co-captain Ivo Cerda started the first 13 matches of the season -- tallying two goals and two assists -- before being slowed by an injury suffered in the opening minutes of the team's match vs. Notre Dame on Oct. 16. He played in just two of the team's final eight matches (as a reserve). Cerda joined Mertz as a semifinalist for the 2018 Senior CLASS Award, and was named an Academic All-American for the second consecutive year.
Honors and Awards
Jack
Hallahan
Robbie
Mertz
Umar Farouk
Osman
Marcello
Borges
Team Awards
MVPs: Robbie Mertz, Jack Hallahan
Young Player of the Year: Jackson Ragen, Umar Farouk Osman
Club Man of the Year: Peter Brown
Unsung Hero: Noah Kleedtke
Steve Burns Academic Award: Ivo Cerda
Michigan Ultras Award: Henry Mashburn
Big Ten & National Awards
United Soccer Coaches All-America (Second Team): Jack Hallahan
MAC Hermann Trophy Semifinalist: Jack Hallahan
United Soccer Coaches All-North Region (First Team): Jack Hallahan
United Soccer Coaches All-North Region (Second Team): Robbie Mertz
United Soccer Coaches All-North Region (Third Team): Marcello Borges
Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year: Jack Hallahan
All-Big Ten (First Team): Jack Hallahan (unanimous), Robbie Mertz
All-Big Ten (Second Team): Marcello Borges, Umar Farouk Osman
All-Big Ten Tournament Team: Robbie Mertz, Jackson Ragen
Google Cloud/CoSIDA Academic All-America (First Team): Ivo Cerda
2018 Senior CLASS Award Finalist: Robbie Mertz
2018 Senior CLASS Award Semifinalist: Ivo Cerda
Big Ten Sportsmanship Award Nominee: Peter Brown
Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week: Umar Farouk Osman (Oct. 2)
Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week: Jackson Ragen (Sept. 18)
Academic All-Big Ten (13)
Marcello Borges, Sr., Economics
Peter Brown, Sr., Sport Management
Ivo Cerda, Sr., Cellular & Molecular Biology
Joel Harrison, So., Engineering
Joe Hertgen, Jr., Business Administration
Noah Kleedtke, Sr., Nuclear Engineering & Radiological Sciences
Robbie Mertz, Sr., Business Administration
Lucas Rosendall, Jr., General Studies
Abdou Samake, Jr., Information
Carlos Tellez, So., Business Administration
Andrew Verdi, Jr., Business Administration
Marc Ybarra, So., Business Administration
Mohammed Zakyi, So., LSA/Undeclared
