CORVALLIS, Ore. – The 2021 Cascade Collegiate Conference Men’s Soccer postseason awards were announced Monday by the conference office, with the two CCC regular-season co-champions highlighting the list.
Warner Pacific University’s Arturo Bahena was named the WVT Laboratory Offensive Player of the Year, while Oregon Tech’s Joel Witts grabbed the WVT Laboratory Defensive Player of the Year. Corban University’s Alvaro Arche was selected the Newcomer of the Year and WPU’s Troy Ready was named the Coach of the Year. Walla Walla University earned the Les Schwab Team Sportsmanship Award.
In just four seasons at the helm, Ready led the Knights to its first CCC regular-season title and the conference’s first automatic qualifier for the NAIA National Tournament. The Knights enter the postseason receiving votes in the latest NAIA Coaches’ Poll with a 14-2-1 overall record. As a team, WPU leads the CCC with 48 goals on the year, which ranks 35
th in the NAIA.
Bahena, a senior forward from Las Vegas, leads the conference with 68 shots, averaging 3.78 shots per game, and 39 points with 15 goals (first in the CCC, 19
th in the NAIA) and nine assists (first in the CCC, 24
th in the NAIA). Five of his goals have also been game-winners, which ranks second in the conference. He’s been named the WVT Laboratory Men’s Soccer Offensive Player of the Week twice this season and helped the Knights pick up the top seed in the CCC tournament.
Witts, a junior goalkeeper from Bend, Ore., helped anchor the Hustlin’ Owls backline to claim a share of the CCC regular-season title. He leads the conference and sits 10
th nationally with a .848 save percentage. Witts has posted six shutouts on the year, which sits second in the CCC and 16
th in the NAIA.
Arche, a junior midfielder from Barcelona, Spain, quickly established himself into the Warrior lineup and helped Corban earn the No. 4 seed in the CCC tournament. He enters the postseason with four goals and five assists (fourth in the CCC) under his belt, looking to help the Warriors defend their 2019 CCC Tournament title.
WPU had eight all-conference selections, including three first-team honorees. OIT saw six Owls earn all-conference, with four finding spots on the first team.
The full list of the 2021 CCC All-Conference team can be found
here.