NEW YORK – Creighton junior forward Duncan McGuire has been voted the 2022 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. Georgetown senior midfielder Aidan Rocha was named Midfielder of the Year with teammate Daniel Wu named Defensive Player of the Year. Goalkeeper of the Year honors were garnered by Xavier’s senior netminder Cole Jensen. Butler’s Palmer Ault earned Freshman of the Year honors, while Brian Wiese and the Georgetown staff earned BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year accolades.
Leading the league with 30 points, McGuire was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. It marks the seventh time in nine seasons a Creighton student-athlete has received the honor (2014, 2015, 2017, 2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022).
Overall, McGuire leads the BIG EAST in goals (14), goals per game (0.82), points (30) and points per game (1.76). In 10 league matches, the junior forward also led the way in goals (seven) and points (14). Leading the nation’s top-10 offensive attack (sixth, 2.59 goals per game), McGuire and the Bluejays locked up the No. 6 seed in the BIG EAST Championship and have advanced to Thursday’s Semifinal match against Seton Hall at 4 p.m. ET. Nationally, he ranks second in the NCAA in goals per game and sixth in points per game.
Rocha is the third consecutive Hoya to be named BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year, marking the fourth-consecutive season overall a Georgetown student-athlete has accomplished the feat, the longest streak in conference history. Rocha has started all 16 games he has appeared in for the Hoyas and amassed nine points with three goals and three assists. Transitioning from a defender to a midfielder early in the season, Rocha has played an integral role in leading Georgetown to the eighth regular season crown in program history.
Wu anchored a defense that combined for six shutouts on the year and in conference play allowed a league-low nine goals in 10 games. Wu started all 15 games he has appeared in for the Hoyas and helped limit opponents to just 80 shots on goal and a .090 shot percentage. A unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honoree, Wu earned the eighth Defensive Player of the Year accolade for Georgetown and the fifth in as many years.
Jensen is the third Musketeer netminder to claim Goalkeeper of the Year and the program’s first since 2016, with Cory Brown (2016) and Nick Hagglund (2013) previously receiving the honor. Nationally, Jensen ranked tied for sixth with eight shutouts in 17 regular season contests. With 58 saves on the year, Jensen limited his opponents to a league low 14 goals on the year. In the regular season, he boasted a 0.806 save percentage, while leading the Musketeers to the No. 3 overall seed in the BIG EAST Championship.
A unanimous selection, Ault is Butler’s third Freshman of the Year in program history. Earning every start in 2022, Ault quickly gained the trust of the Butler coaching staff after back-to-back goals to open the season, including a match-winner against then-No. 14 Marshall on Aug. 29. After a stellar three game stretch from Sept. 21 through Sept. 30, Ault registered eight points on six goals and two assists to lock up both National and BIG EAST Player of the Week Honors. Overall, the forward ranks second in the BIG EAST with 10 goals and 26 points on the season, while capping conference action with 11 points on four goals and three assists. He was voted as a member of the All-BIG EAST First Team.
Brian Wiese and the Georgetown coaching staff picked up their fifth such honor and second consecutive. Overall, it marks the seventh time in program history the Hoyas’ staff has been named BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year (1994, 1997, 2010, 2013, 2015, 2021, 2022). For the fourth straight season, Georgetown claimed the BIG EAST Regular Season title and top-overall seed in the BIG EAST Championship, capping the regular season 8-1-1 in conference action and 10-4-2 overall. Currently ranked 14th in the United Soccer Coaches poll, Georgetown is set to take on Butler in the BIG EAST Semifinal Thursday at 6:30 p.m. at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md.
Announced alongside with the regular season awards were the 2022 All-Conference teams. The All-BIG EAST First and Second Teams are positional with nine positional players, a goalkeeper and an at-large vote. The All-BIG EAST Third Team is made up of at least 11 at-large bids.
Joining Ault, Jensen, McGuire, Rocha and Wu on the All-BIG EAST First Team was Butler senior forward Wilmer Cabrera, Jr., UConn’s sophomore midfielder Mateo Leceque, Creighton’s Charles Auguste and Owen O’Malley, as well as Seton Hall’s Luca Dahn and Quenzi Huerman.
Georgetown and Creighton led all schools with seven honorees each on the all-conference teams. Butler, Providence, Seton Hall and Xavier each tied for third with three honorees apiece, followed by UConn, Marquette, St. John’s with two and DePaul and Villanova with one.
See below for a full listing of the award winners.
2022 BIG EAST Regular Season Awards
BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year
Duncan McGuire, Creighton, Jr., F
BIG EAST Midfielder of the Year
Aidan Rocha, Georgetown, Sr., M
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Daniel Wu, Georgetown, Sr., D
BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year
Cole Jensen, Xavier, Sr., GK
BIG EAST Freshman of the Year
Palmer Ault, Butler, Fr., F ^
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
Georgetown
2022 BIG EAST All-Conference Teams
First Team
Palmer Ault, Butler, Fr., F
Wilmer Cabrera, Butler, Sr., F
Mateo Leveque, Connecticut, So., M
Charles Auguste, Creighton, Sr., M
Duncan McGuire, Creighton, Jr., F
Owen O’Malley, Creighton, So., D
Aidan Rocha, Georgetown, Sr., M
Daniel Wu, Georgetown, Sr., D ^
Luca Dahn, Seton Hall, Gr., D
Quenzi Huerman, Seton Hall, Sr., F
Cole Jensen, Xavier, Sr., GK
Second Team
Jack Haywood, Butler, Sr., M
Jackson Castro, Creighton, So., F
Ryan Schewe, Georgetown, Jr., GK
Marlon Tabora, Georgetown, Jr., F
Edrey Caceres, Marquette, So., M
Gevork Diarbian, Providence, Jr., F
Ramzi Qawasmy, Providence, Gr., D
Brandon Knapp, St. John’s, Gr., D
Antek Sienkiel, St. John’s, R-Jr., M
Lyam MacKinnon, Villanova, Sr., M/F
Makel Rasheed, Xavier, Jr., D
Third Team (at-large) *
Jayden Reid, Connecticut, Jr., D
Paul Kruse, Creighton, Sr., GK
Giorgio Probo, Creighton, So., M
Callum Watson, Creighton, Sr., M
Jake Fuderer, DePaul, Sr., D
Kenny Nielsen, Georgetown, Jr., D
Jack Panayotou, Georgetown, Fr., M
Kieran Sargeant, Georgetown, So., D
Lukas Sunesson, Marquette, Sr., F
Chris Roman, Providence, Gr., M
Johannes Pex, Seton Hall, Sr., D
Dylan Kropp, Xavier, Fr., D
^ denotes unanimous selection
* due to ties in voting there is an extra member on the All-BIG EAST Third Team