QUEENS, N.Y. – After leading the St. John’s University men to 10 wins and a top 25 ranking during the regular season, three players received end-of-season recognition from the Big East Monday.

Luka Gavran earned goalkeeper of the year honors and claimed a spot on the All-conference first team. Lucas Bartlett and Brandon Knapp also were named to the first team.

St. John’s placed three on the first team for the first time since 2005 when Matt Groenwald, Jason Landers and Steven Old were recognized among the conference’s best.

Gavran became the third goalkeeper in St. John’s history to earn the league’s top honor for the position, joining Jan Hoffelner in 2019 and Landers in 2005. The redshirt junior from Hamilton, Ont. has recorded an NCAA Division I-best 11 shutouts, tied for fourth on the program’s season record list with Derby Carrillo (2009), Bill Gaudette (2002) and Jon Urbom (1992).

Gavran leads the Big East’s everyday keepers in both major categories for the position, compiling a 0.52 goals-against average and a .851 save percentage. The 6-6 netminder ranks second nationally in save percentage and third in GAA.

Bartlett, a first team All-Missouri Valley Conference selection at Drake last season, has been a key part of the Red Storm’s success this fall. The graduate student is the team’s leading scorer, finding the back of the net five times and dishing out three assists for 13 points. He has scored those five goals on 23 shots, good enough for a team-best .217 shot percentage. Three of Bartlett’s tallies have been game-winners, including an extratime penalty kick at Villanova University Oct. 9.

Bartlett also has anchored the Red Storm’s efforts on the other end of the pitch, leading a back line that ranks among the nation’s leaders in shutouts and GAA.

Knapp, a third team selection in each of the past two seasons, earned his third straight all-conference honor after a regular season that saw him affect that Red Storm from nearly every spot on the field. A holding midfielder and center back for most of his first three years with the program, Knapp played atop the Red Storm formation at the beginning of the season, filling a gap left by an injury to 2019 Big East offensive player of the year Tani Oluwaseyi. In this new role, Knapp promptly delivered four goals and six assists during the regular season, including three game-winners. Knapp also anchored the Red Storm midfield and spent time on the backline, helping the Johnnies solidify a reputation as one of the nation’s top defensive units.

The Red Storm fell in a shootout to Butler University in the Big East quarterfinals Saturday night. The Johnnies will learn their NCAA Tournament fate on Monday, Nov. 15, when the selection show airs at 1 p.m. on NCAA.com.

 

 

BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year

Diego Gutierrez, Creighton, Sr., F

BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year

Dante Polvara, Georgetown, Jr., M

BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year

Sean Zawadzki, Georgetown, Sr., M

BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year

Luka Gavran, St. John’s, Jr, GK

BIG EAST Freshman of the Year

Mateo Leveque, Connecticut, Fr., M

BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year

Georgetown

All-BIG EAST First Team

Wilmer Cabrera, Butler, Jr., F

Diego Gutierrez, Creighton, Sr., F *

Dante Polvara, Georgetown, Jr., M *

Sean Zawadzki, Georgetown, Sr., M

Will Sands, Georgetown, Jr., D

Paulo Lima, Providence, Sr., M

Ramzi Qawasmy, Providence, Sr., D

Lucas Bartlett, St. John’s, Sr., D

Luka Gavran, St. John’s, Jr, GK

Brandon Knapp St. John’s, Sr., M

Karsen Henderlong, Xavier, Jr., F

All-BIG EAST Second Team

Rhys Myers, Butler, Sr., D

Callum Watson, Creighton, Sr., M

Jake Fuderer, DePaul, Sr., D

Stefan Stojanovic, Georgetown, Jr., F

Daniel Wu, Georgetown, Jr., D

Lukas Sunesson, Marquette, Jr., F

Edrey Caceres, Marquette, Fr., M

Gevork Diarbian, Providence, So., F

Luis Garcia, Providence, Jr., M

Lyam MacKinnon, Villanova, Jr., M

Carson Williams, Villanova, RSr., GK

All-BIG EAST Third Team ^

Mateo Leveque, Connecticut, Fr., M

Paul Kruse, Creighton, Sr., GK

Charles Auguste, Creighton, Sr., M

Gandhi Cruz, DePaul, RFr., GK

Zach Riviere, Georgetown, Sr., F

Giannis Nikopolidis, Georgetown, Sr., GK

Chris Hegardt, Georgetown, So., M

Kenny Nielsen, Georgetown, So., D

Beto Soto, Marquette, So., M

Davis Smith, Providence, Gr., F

Malcolm Duncan, Providence, Gr., D

CJ Tibbling, Seton Hall, Sr., F

Luca Dahn, Seton Hall, Sr., D

Johannes Pex, Seton Hall, Jr., D

*Denotes Unanimous Decision

^extra players added due to a tie in voting

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.