Capobianco Wins NECC Coach of the Year, Six Receive All-NECC Honors
Regis (Mass.) men's soccer head coach Renato Capobianco was voted the New England Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year on Tuesday for the first time.
ATTLEBORO, Mass. - Regis (Mass.) men's soccer head coach Renato Capobianco was voted the New England Collegiate Conference Coach of the Year on Tuesday for the first time. In addition to Capobianco's honor, the NECC finalists landed six players on All-Conference teams, establishing a new program record.
In his sixth season at the helm of Pride men's soccer, Capobianco led his team to a 10-8-2 overall record, the second winningest season in program history. The Pride went 5-2-1 in NECC play to earn the two seed in the conference tournament, and advanced to the NECC Championship game for the first time in team history.
Defender Emiky Pires (Boston, Mass.) and midfielder Litchie Barbosa (Boston, Mass.) were both selected First Team All-Conference in their first seasons with the Pride. Pires recorded two assists on the season while seeing action in all 20 games. His long-throw ability served as a unique offensive weapon for the Pride and routinely left opposing defenses scrambling as Pires would hurl throw-ins right into the box. Barbosa led Regis with six assists on the season to go along with a pair of goals.
Junior midfielder David Venegas (Escondido, Calif.) and forward Derek Triana (Port St. Lucie, Fla.) were selected Second Team All-NECC. Venegas tallied a goal and three assists in his first season playing for Regis, after transferring in from San Diego Mesa College. Triana served as the Pride's leading scorer in 2016 with 28 points overall. His 12 goals on the season also led the Pride, and ranked third in the NECC. Triana was also selected to the NECC All-Sportsmanship Team.
Senior goalkeeper Manny Santiago (Bristol, Conn.) and defender Collin Thurston (Temecula, Calif.) rounded out the Pride's All-Conference honors, as they were selected Third Team All-NECC. Already the Pride's all-time winningest goalkeeper, Santiago added another 10 wins to his resume, finishing with a record of 10-8-2 in his senior season. Santiago's 1.58 goals against average was second best in the NECC, while his .743 save percentage ranked fourth. Thurston appeared in 14 games for the Pride on defense, tallying one goal from the Regis backline. The goal was part of a 3-2 win over Anna Maria on Sept. 3.
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