The 2023 JSN Awards recognize accomplishments by teams, players, and coaches throughout the year. We turn our attention to the college level where JSN has announced the finalists for College Men's Team of the Year.
Montclair State Soccer:
Record: 19-2-2
The Red Hawks men’s soccer team rolled through the regular season behind a 19-2-2 record and veteran head coach Todd Tumelty guided them to their ninth NJAC Tournament Title in program history and to a No. 5 ranking in the country for Division III men’s soccer.
Red Hawk junior and New Jerseyan, Amir Lukovic led the NCAA in points (75), goals (34), and game-winning goals (11) on his way to becoming Offensive Player of the Year. He and fellow junior Ian Chesney were named US soccer coaches All-Americans at the end of the season.
The team battled from a 0-1 deficit to defeat Christopher Newport in the second round of the NCAA tournament but lost in the third round on penalty kicks to No. 7 Connecticut College. Overall, this team had an incredible year behind not only Lukovic’s once-in-a-lifetime season, but a complete team which earned the right to be called both NJAC regular season and tournament champions.
Rutgers Lacrosse:
Record: 8-6
At face value, the 8-6 record that the 2023 Scarlet Knight men’s Lacrosse team produced does not jump off the page, but they followed up their appearance in the 2022 NCAA Final Four, strong. The team led by head coach Brian Brecht shocked No. 5 Loyola by a score of 10-6 on Feb. 25 before going on a five-game winning streak. By season’s end, Rutgers had earned four wins against NCAA Tournament bound teams during the regular season and four of their six losses came against teams who ended up ranked top-8 in the NCAA tournament.
Fairleigh Dickinson Basketball:
Record: 21-16
The FDU Men’s Basketball team had a 2023 to remember. They qualified for the NCAA March Madness tournament even though they lost to Merrimack College. Entering as the 16th seed, they faced a tall task going up against 1-seed Purdue.
The Peacocks defense forced 16 turnovers and allowed the Boilermakers to only shoot 5-26 from beyond the arc. FDU pulled the upset of the tournament defeating Purdue 63-58 becoming only the 2nd 16 seed to ever beat a number 1 seed in tournament history.
Princeton Basketball:
Record: 23-9
The Princeton Tigers were also a New Jersey basketball team that turned heads in the NCAA March Madness Tournament. Princeton upset #2 seeded Arizona, becoming the 11th #15 seed to do so.
The Tigers weren’t done there! They upset 7th seeded Missouri to advance to the Sweet 16 to take on Creighton. Princeton became the Cinderella story of the tournament but their run was cut short after losing a tight one to Creighton 86-75.
