Trinity's Pierandri, Williams' Goldwasser Named Players of the Year

HARTFORD, Conn. – Senior running back Tom Pierandri of NESCAC Champion Trinity and senior linebacker Graham Goldwasser of Williams earned the NESCAC Offensive and Defensive Players of the Year respectively for 2003. Trinity finished the season a perfect 8-0 for the league title while Williams finished second at 6-2. Trinity head coach Chuck Priore also garnered his first Coach of the Year honors.

Pierandri (pictured right) makes his first appearance on the first-team roster after leading the conference in rushing, averaging 133.1 yards/game, and was the only player to crack the 1000 yard rushing mark (1065) on the season. His senior campaign was capped during the season finale against Wesleyan when he ran for a NESCAC record 304 yards. Pierandri also led the conference in scoring with 12 touchdowns, averaging 9.2 points/game.

Williams’ senior Graham Goldwasser makes his second appearance at linebacker on the NESCAC first team. Goldwasser finished the season second in the nation in tackles with a conference leading 14.9 tackles/game and a total of 119. He also led the conference in assisted tackles (70) and finished with 3.0 sacks.

Bates College running back Ken Adams was honored as NESCAC Offensive Rookie of the Year and Middlebury College defensive back Scott Secor was awarded NESCAC Defensive Rookie of the Year honors. Adams carried the ball 173 times for 666 yards and two touchdowns in six games for the Bobcats. Secor finished fifth in the conference averaging 9.1 tackles/game and added three interceptions over seven games.

Leading the first team offense is Middlebury junior quarterback Mike Keenan. Keenan finished the season with 136 completions on 259 tries for 199.5 yards/game. He threw for 13 touchdowns and 9 interceptions to finish with a pass efficiency rating of 118.5 and led Middlebury to the second rated passing offense in the conference.

Amherst running back Fletcher Ladd and Wesleyan wide receiver Pat Moffett were both repeat first-team all-NESCAC selections. Ladd finished second in the conference in rushing, averaging 111.8 yards/game to pace Amherst’s second ranked rushing offense. Moffett led the conference for the second straight year in receiving, averaging 104.2 yards/game and an impressive 19.0 yards/catch. The senior also added five touchdowns for the league’s top ranked passing offense.

Joining Ladd and Pierandri in the backfield is Williams’ senior running back Mike Hackett. Hackett finished the season with 710 yards on 154 carries and four touchdowns. Amherst’s Jay Wagstaff and Middlebury’s Tom Cleaver also received first-team honors at wide receiver. Cleaver led the conference in receptions with 47 and added five touchdowns and Wagstaff added 44 catches. The receiving corps is rounded out by Bates College senior tight end Mike Moynahan.

Trinity’s Jared Carillo leads a host of seniors selected as all-NESCAC on the offensive line. Carillo, making his second consecutive appearance on the first-team, is joined by seniors Shane Morrow of Amherst, Jeff Bolduc of Bates, Justin Kelley of Tufts, and Dan Giardina of Williams. Bolduc was a second team all-conference selection last year.

Heading the all-NESCAC defensive honorees is three-time first team selection Caleb Hudak, defensive lineman at Tufts University. Hudak is joined by two-time first team selections Will McGrath of Williams and Greg Tanner of Trinity. Tanner led a Trinity defense that is currently ranked first in the nation in rushing defense, total defense and scoring defense, and ranked second in pass efficiency defense. Hudak and McGrath are joined on the line by seniors Chris Smith of Hamilton and Jamie Creed of Trinity, who led the conference with 9.5 sacks.

The defensive backfield consists of five new faces to the NESCAC first-team. They are led by junior Mike Horan of Bates, who led the conference in tackles for loss and recovered fumbles. He is joined by Paul Whiting of Amherst, Aaron Goldstein of Trinity, Mark Tilki of Tufts, and Craig Pittman of Middlebury.

Senior return specialist Mark Tilki also heads the list of all-conference special team honorees. Tilki led the conference in kick return average at 31.2 yards per return and finished second in punt return average (10.6 yards/ret). Senior place kicker Marcellus Rolle of Tufts and senior punter Jim Rooney of Wesleyan round out the list of first-team all-NESCAC selections. Rolle set a new NESCAC record for field goals in a season with ten.

NESCAC all-conference selections are determined by the conference coaches. Additional players honored are due to ties in the voting.