EDISON, NJ (Nov. 11, 2024) – The Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) today announced the recipients of 2024 Men’s Soccer postseason awards, voted on by the league’s 13 head coaches.
Highlighting major award honorees was 2024 MAAC Golden Boot winner Momo Diop from Rider University. A junior forward from Thies, Senegal, Diop was the top point earner in the MAAC during the 2024 regular season for the MAAC Co-Regular Season champions, Rider. Diop led the league with 22 total points and ranked tied for the conference lead with nine total goals in 17 contests. He ranked second in goals per game (0.53), points per game (1.29), and game-winning goals (3). Additionally, Diop added four assists and was a perfect 1-1 in penalty kicks on the season, while his 1.12 shots on goal per game was fifth best in the MAAC. A two-time All-MAAC First Team selection, Diop becomes the Broncs fourth ever Offensive Player of the Year in program history, the first since Zaki Alibou in 2021.
Earning his second straight MAAC Defensive Player of the Year award was Iona University’s Tim Timchenko. Timchenko appeared and started in all 15 matches for the back-to-back MAAC Regular Season champion, Iona Gaels in the regular season. The Kyiv, Ukraine native anchored a defense that allowed just five goals in MAAC contests and 16 goals overall, both of which ranked second in the conference. Timchenko was also a key member of a defense that recorded clean sheets in half of their league games during the season, the second-most in the MAAC. This is the third Defensive Player of the Year award for Iona in program history with Timchenko boasting two and the other coming from Malcolm Moreno in 2019. Timchenko also becomes the fourth player ever to win consecutive Defensive Player of the Year honors, the first in a decade since Monmouth’s Matt Jeffery won back-to-back awards in 2013 and 2014.
Rider goalkeeper, Adam Salama, was chosen as the 2024 MAAC Golden Glove. Hailing from Ramle, Israel, Salama registered 1433:10 minutes in the net, making 42 saves, allowing 11 goals, with seven shutouts and a 12-3-1 overall record during the 2024 regular season. One of the best keepers in the nation, he led the MAAC and ranked top-20 in the country in goals against average (0.691, 6
th nationally), total shutouts (7, 11
th nationally), goals allowed (11, 19
th nationally), and save percentage (0.792, 20
th nationally). Salama won a league-most 12 overall games in goal and was the only keeper in the conference to win double-digit matches in 2024. He is the second ever Bronc to garner the top goalkeeper award in the MAAC, joining Ryan Baird who did so in 2016.
Dren Dobruna from Siena College was voted as the 2024 MAAC Rookie of the Year. A freshman back from Waterbury, CT, Dobruna racked up 12 points, handed out 10 assists, and scored one goal in 14 matches during his first collegiate regular season. His 10 total assists led the MAAC and ranked fifth in the NCAA, while his 0.714 assists average were the most in the league and ranked fourth in the country. Dobruna was the only player in the league with double-figure assists in the regular season and the mark is the most in a single-season by anyone in program history. He is the fifth overall Rookie of the Year from Siena, the first since Jacob Sandun Arachchige-Jensen in 2021.
Rider head coach, Chad Duernberger was voted as 2024 MAAC Coach of the Year by his peers. In just his second season at the helm of the Rider Broncs, Duernberger, led the Broncs to a share of the MAAC Regular Season championship after finishing the season with a 6-1-1 MAAC record (19 points) and a league-best overall record of 12-4-1, securing just the second regular season trophy in program history; the other coming back in Rider’s inaugural MAAC season in 1997. He has enjoyed nothing but success in two seasons at Rider after leading his team to the MAAC Championship title last season and putting together the fourth-largest improvement in the country in wins, taking over a team that won three games in 2022, and leading them 12 wins in his first season in 2023. 2024 also marks just the third time in program history that the team has won at least 12 matches in consecutive seasons.
Rider led the way with eight All-MAAC selections, while Siena was right behind with seven honorees. Iona, Manhattan, Marist, and Siena followed with five all-conference selections apiece. Iona, Rider and Siena had the most First Team choices, boasting three each.
The full list of All-MAAC Teams and major awards winners are below.
| 2024 Men’s Soccer Major Awards |
| Awards |
Player |
School |
| Golden Boot |
Momo Diop |
Rider |
| Defensive Player of the Year |
Tim Timchenko |
Iona |
| Golden Glove |
Adam Salama |
Rider |
| Rookie of the Year |
Dren Dobruna |
Siena |
| Coach of the Year |
Chad Duernberger |
Rider |
| All-MAAC First Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Ziv Dahan |
So. |
Forward |
Manhattan |
| Bryan Akongo |
Sr. |
Forward |
Rider |
| Momo Diop |
Jr. |
Forward |
Rider |
| William Pierce |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Fairfield |
| Thiago Cagna |
Sr. |
Midfield |
Iona |
| Sergio Gonzalez Fernandez |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Iona |
| Chris Verheul |
Fr. |
Midfield |
Marist |
| David Garcia Gallego |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Sacred Heart |
| Zach Gardner |
Sr. |
Midfield |
Siena |
| Tim Timchenko |
Sr. |
Defense |
Iona |
| Dren Dobruna |
Fr. |
Defense |
Siena |
| Henrik Winkelmann |
Gr. |
Defense |
Siena |
| Adam Salama |
Jr. |
Goalkeeper |
Rider |
| All-MAAC Second Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Ely Sidibe |
Sr. |
Forward |
Canisius |
| Sebastiano Musu |
Sr. |
Forward |
Manhattan |
| Richard Morel |
Sr. |
Forward |
Marist |
| Henry Hamilton |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Manhattan |
| Adel Al Masude |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Rider |
| Theo Da Silva |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Rider |
| Lee Mara |
So. |
Midfield |
Siena |
| Nassim Akki |
Jr. |
Defense |
Manhattan |
| Martin Chladek |
Sr. |
Defense |
Rider |
| Jack McGeechan |
Sr. |
Defense |
Rider |
| Fernando Schmelz |
Fr. |
Goalkeeper |
Iona |
| Bennet Glinder |
So. |
Goalkeeper |
Siena |
| All-MAAC Third Team |
| Player |
Class |
Position |
School |
| Bautista Rossi |
Fr. |
Forward |
Iona |
| Sam McCann |
Jr. |
Forward |
Sacred Heart |
| Mario Navarro Perez |
So. |
Forward |
Siena |
| Ayoub Boumelala |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Manhattan |
| Kyle Evans |
So. |
Midfield |
Marist |
| Graham Dougald |
Jr. |
Midfield |
Mount St. Mary's |
| Noe Cabezas |
Sr. |
Midfield |
Quinnipiac |
| Andrew Erickson |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Rider |
| Cole Hellert |
Gr. |
Midfield |
Siena |
| Evan Marques |
Fr. |
Defense |
Marist |
| Nicholas Sanchez |
So. |
Defense |
Marist |
| Matthias Dick |
Jr. |
Defense |
Sacred Heart |
| Nelton Semedo |
Sr. |
Goalkeeper |
Merrimack |
| Karl Netzell |
Jr. |
Goalkeeper |
Quinnipiac |
The 2024 MAAC Men’s Soccer Championship is an eight-team, single-elimination championship taking place November 10-17, 2024. Each match during the championship will be hosted by the higher seed and all rounds of the championship will reseed. The quarterfinals will take place on Sunday, November 10, followed by the semifinals on Thursday, November 14, and concluding with the championship final on Sunday, November 17. For all information regarding the 2024 MAAC Men’s Soccer Championship, please visit
maacsports.com/msoc.
About the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference:
With 13 institutions strongly bound by the sound principles of quality and integrity in academics and excellence in athletics, the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) is in its 44th year of competition during the 2024-25 academic year. Current conference members include: Canisius University, Fairfield University, Iona University, Manhattan University, Marist College, Merrimack College, Mount St. Mary’s University, Niagara University, Quinnipiac University, Rider University, Sacred Heart University, Saint Peter’s University, and Siena College.
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