PLAYER OF THE YEAR
Ben Pardew
Calvert Hall
The Cardinals prided themselves on mental and physical toughness and none was tougher than Pardew.
The senior striker scored two goals in each of three games against this season's toughest league opponent, McDonogh. He scored the game-winner in 2-1, 3-2 and 2-1 victories over the Eagles, including one in overtime of the MIAA A Conference championship game.
Pardew also scored a game-winner in overtime of a 1-0 victory against Mount St. Joseph, one of seven game-winning goals. He had a total of 15 goals and one assist.
"On the videotape, a McDonogh defender had two handfuls of his shirt when he scored the winning goal in the championship game," Calvert Hall coach Andy Moore said. "A kid like Ben just finds a way to win. He was unstoppable up front. We won because we had a lot of tough kids like him."
COACH OF THE YEAR
Andy Moore
Calvert Hall
The Cardinals became the first unbeaten, untied soccer team in the 11-year-old Maryland Interscholastic Athletic Association when they posted an 18-0 league record this season. They were 20-0-2 overall, No. 1- ranked and became only the fifth Calvert Hall team to go undefeated.
Moore, 32, a graduate of Dickinson College, served his fifth season as head coach and 11th overall at Calvert Hall. With 13 returnees from a team that went 13-6-2 a year ago, his greatest challenge was mental preparation - getting the team ready to play hard in every game in one of the area's toughest leagues.
"Mental toughness was the difference this season," said Moore, who has survived the difficult challenge of replacing legendary coach Bill Karpovich. A Massachusetts native who teaches humanities and history, Moore is writing a doctoral dissertation for Catholic University. He is also the director of the McMullen Scholars Program at Calvert Hall.
"It feels good to finally have the soccer program back where I wanted it to be," he said.
THE FIRST TEAM
Kwaku Boateng
Hammond
Extremely quick and skilled, the senior striker always drew a crowd of defenders. Told he had to carry his team on his back for the playoffs, the two-time All-Metro and two-time Howard County Player of the Year broke loose to score seven playoff goals, as the Bears captured their second straight regional title - the only ones in school history. He scored the game-winner in that title game, a 1-0 victory over North Hagerstown. Overall, he scored 15 goals and had six assists. He had 58 career goals.
Josh Burford
Glenelg
A complete player, the senior striker led No. 5-ranked Glenelg (14-3) to its first Howard County championship. Even though he was frequently marked, he scored 15 goals and had five assists. The season's highlight for the four-year starter and two-time All-County player was a hat trick against state Class 3A champion River Hill, a team that allowed just 11 goals all season. Howard County's co-Player of the Year has outstanding field vision and leaping ability as well as knowledge of the game.
Ryan Callinan
Calvert Hall
Dangerous in the corners, down the flanks or in the air, the junior midfielder played four different positions, including sweeper, forward and center midfield, but he proved most disruptive from outside midfield where he was more difficult to mark.
His great touch allowed him to serve threatening balls consistently and he always played strong in the air. He finished with nine goals and 11 assists, and scored on a header against McDonogh in the MIAA A Conference championship game.
Scott Forney
South River
Second-team All-Metro last season, the senior sweeper played with composure while solidifying and organizing the Seahawks' back line. A complete player who could (and sometimes did) play anywhere he was asked, Forney also showed a good finishing touch and the ability to find open teammates with dangerous passes while contributing five goals and five assists for the No. 11 Seahawks (12-4-2). He displayed excellent speed, skills and ball sense, and read the game extremely well.
Tom Franklin
Towson
A three-year starter, the 5-foot-10 senior goalkeeper showed catlike quickness and played the angles well. A serious, businesslike player, he recorded 10 shutouts and led the 10th-ranked Generals (15-2-2) to the state Class 2A finals and their best season in years. While making 167 saves, he allowed just 11 goals for the state runner-up. He made an impressive nine saves in the 2-1 state semifinal win over defending champ Bethesda-Chevy Chase, and also shined in the regional title game against Eastern Tech.
Mo Hamzeh
River Hill
The senior striker led No. 2 River Hill (16-2-1) to its fourth state title in seven years by scoring the only goal of the Class 3A state championship game against Dulaney. The leading scorer in Howard County with 18 goals and nine assists, Hamzeh had six playoff goals, scoring in four of five games. The three-year starter was skilled at turning the corner and holding the ball up top.
Justin Hughes
River Hill
A versatile player who could fill in at midfield or stopper, Hughes' calling card was explosive speed.
A great one-on-one player, the senior two-time, first-team All- Howard County striker was as dangerous a creator as he was a finisher. Among his 10 goals and Howard County-high 14 assists was a game-winner against Liberty in a 2-1 state semifinal victory, and the game-winner against Centennial in a 4-3 come-from-behind, overtime win.
Saah Johnson
Oakland Mills
Second-team All-Metro last season, the transfer from Mount St. Joseph created space for teammates by constantly taking on three or four players. He often earned throws-ins or corner kicks, which were Oakland Mills' offensive bread-and-butter. A former national pool player, the junior striker scored five goals and had seven assists for the No. 4 Scorpions (12-4), including both goals in a 2-1 state Class 1A championship victory over Smithsburg.
Wijy Jones
Old Mill
The four-year starter lifted upstart No. 7 Old Mill (14-3-2) to Anne Arundel County and Class 4A East Region titles by scoring five game-winning goals. With 10 minutes left, the center midfielder got the game-winner against South River in the county title game, and then scored the game's only goal against the same Seahawks in the region final. The Anne Arundel County Player of the Year finished with eight goals and seven assists.
Stanley Kaweesi
Oakland Mills
The four-year starter successfully made the switch from outside halfback to center midfielder to become the driving force and personality of the Class 1A state champs. He collected his third state title trophy in four seasons, while displaying standout toughness and speed. A conduit for All-Metro striker Saah Johnson, Kaweesi scored three goals and had seven assists, including an assist in the 2-1 state championship victory over Smithsburg.
Dan Keppeler
Dulaney
The junior sweeper organized and stabilized an inexperienced defense with his one-on-one ability and talent for reading the game. His performance helped the sixth-ranked Lions (14-5), who played the toughest public school schedule in the area, to a second straight state 3A runner-up season. The two-time, first-team All-Baltimore City/County player led Dulaney through a five-game playoff run in which the Lions recorded two shutouts and allowed just three goals.
Kyle McHugh
McDonogh
Second-team All-Metro a year ago, the versatile and feisty four-year starter racked up big numbers while leading the third-ranked Eagles (19-5-2) to their fourth straight MIAA A Conference championship game. He had 25 goals and 26 assists, bringing his career totals to 48 goals and 55 assists. He scored a hat trick against Spalding, four goals against Bullis and had three game-winning goals. With a 4.2 GPA, he's headed to Princeton after turning down Duke and Notre Dame.
Kevin Mezzadra
Loyola
His 71 career goals make him the No. 1 scorer in Loyola history. The imposing 6-foot-2, 190-pound senior showed power with either foot and scored many goals in the air on headballs. His free kicks over the wall and under the crossbar were remarkable. The striker, first-team All-Metro last season, scored 22 goals and had nine assists while leading the Dons to their fourth straight MIAA semifinal. He'll attend UMBC.
Isaiah Ramsey
Eastern Tech
Quick to the ball, the senior stopper overlapped and supported well and could push forward aggressively on the attack. A three-year starter, he rebounded from a disappointing junior season to lead the No. 8 Mavericks (14-3-1) to their second straight Baltimore County title. An engineering student with a 4.55 adjusted GPA, the captain scored seven goals and had 10 assists, including a game-winning overtime goal against Liberty.
Brian Yi
McDonogh
First-team All-Metro for his third straight season, this extraordinarily talented performer, a two-time Adidas All-American and a Parade All-American last season, concluded his illustrious high school career by contributing 29 goals and 21 assists, bringing his three-year career totals to 59 goals and 51 assists. MVP of the Chestnut Hill (Pa.) Classic, he scored seven game-winning goals, hat tricks against Spalding and Gilman, four goals against St. Paul's and his team's only goals in a pair of 1-1 ties with MIAA rival Loyola. The senior split his time between striker and halfback. He'll attend Duke.