NEW YORK - Akron junior forward Jason Shokalook has been voted the 2023 BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. Creighton senior midfielder Giorgio Probo and Georgetown senior midfielder Marlon Tabora were named Co-Midfielder of the Year with Georgetown senior defender Kenny Nielsen named Defensive Player of the Year. Goalkeeper of the Year honors were garnered by Georgetown’s senior netminder Ryan Schewe. UConn defender Kieran Chandler and DePaul midfielder Noeh Hernandez share 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 33 points, Shokalook was named BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year. In the program’s first season since joining the conference following the conclusion of the 2022 season, the senior forward is the first Akron student-athlete to earn a BIG EAST major award.
 
Overall, Shokalook capped the regular season tied for first in the BIG EAST in goals (14) and goals per game (0.82), as well as first in points (33) and points per game (1.94). In eight league matches, the junior forward also ranked near the top of the league in goals (six, t-2^nd) and points (15, 2^nd). Nationally, he ranks fourth in points per game, as well as tied for fifth in points per game.
 
A senior captain for the Bluejays, Probo has started 15 games with 16 appearances, while seeing the field for 1,331 minutes in 2023 and going the full 90 minutes in 10 matches. Playing an integral part in setting up the scoring offense for Creighton, Probo led the team with eight assists.
 
Tabora has played in 15 games for the nation’s fifth-ranked Hoyas and amassed 14 points with three goals and eight assists. Controlling the middle of the field, Tabora has played an integral role in leading Georgetown to the ninth regular season crown in program history.
 
Nielsen anchored a Hoya defense that combined for six shutouts on the year and in conference play allowed a league-low four goals in eight games. Nielsen has started all 16 games in 2023 and has played 1,419 minutes thus far for for the Hoyas and helped limit opponents to just 59 shots on goal and a .104 shot percentage. A unanimous All-BIG EAST First Team honoree, Nielsen earned the ninth Defensive Player of the Year accolade for Georgetown and the sixth in as many years.
 
Schewe has started 11 games in 2023 for the Hoyas and has registered three shutouts in net. With an 8-1-2 (0.818) record, the Hoyas have outscored opponents 27-11 in games the senior netminder has started. Schewe has earned the start and gone the distance in seven of eight league games, as the Hoyas led the conference with just four goals allowed. In addition, Schewe corralled 18 saves in league games, as well as 23 saves overall.
 
Making 13 starts in 16 games played with 1,049 minutes, Chandler has played a key role in controlling the midfield for UConn. Overall, the freshman midfielder has tallied a pair of goals in conference play and dished out four assists. In Saturday’s quarterfinal win over St. John’s, Chandler tallied an assist on the Huskies opening goal. With the win, the Huskies advanced to the BIG EAST semifinal and will play Georgetown at the Maryland SoccerPlex in Boyds, Md., at 6:30 p.m. ET.
 
Hernandez earned 12 starts and appeared in 13 games in 2023 and closed the season gaining more and more trust with the DePaul coaching staff to lead the offensive attack with four consecutive games with 80 or more minutes played. Making a late season push for a postseason berth, Hernandez and the Blue Demons closed the final five game stretch with a 2-1-2 record after opening the year 1-6-1, as the freshman forward notched five goals and an assist in the final five matches. Hernandez tallied a pair of braces in 3-1 wins over then-No. 25 UIC and Seton Hall, as well as scoring a goal and an assist in a 3-3 draw with Marquette.
 
Brian Wiese and the Georgetown coaching staff picked up their sixth such honor and third consecutive. Overall, it marks the eighth time in program history the Hoyas’ staff has been named BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year (1994, 1997, 2010, 2013, 2015, 2021, 2022, 2023). For the fifth straight season, Georgetown claimed the BIG EAST Regular Season title and top-overall seed in the BIG EAST Championship, capping the regular season 6-1-1 in conference action and 12-2-2 overall. Currently ranked fifth in the United Soccer Coaches poll, Georgetown captured the East Division Regular Season crown and will face UConn Thursday in the BIG EAST Championship Presented by JEEP.
 
Announced alongside with the regular season awards were the 2023 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 Shokalook, Probo, Tabora, Nielsen and Schewe on the All-BIG EAST First Team was Creighton junior midfielder Jackson Castro, Georgetown’s Jacob Murrell and Kieran Sargeant, Providence’s Brendan McSorley, St. John’s Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau, as well as Xavier’s Makel Rasheed.
 
Georgetown led all schools with seven honorees on the all-conference teams. Providence ranked second with five honorees, while Akron, UConn and Creighton tied for third with four honorees apiece. In addition, St. John’s had three honorees, DePaul, Xavier and Marquette each had two, while Butler and Seton Hall had one each.
 
See below for a full listing of the award winners.
 
2023 BIG EAST Regular Season Awards
BIG EAST Offensive Player of the Year
Jason Shokalook, Akron, Jr., F
 
BIG EAST Co-Midfielder of the Year
Giorgio Probo, Creighton, Sr., M
Marlon Tabora, Georgetown, Sr., M
 
BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year
Kenny Nielsen, Georgetown, Sr., D
 
BIG EAST Goalkeeper of the Year
Ryan Schewe, Georgetown, Sr., GK
 
BIG EAST Co-Freshman of the Year
Kieran Chandler, UConn, Fr., D
Noeh Hernandez, DePaul, Fr., M
 
BIG EAST Coaching Staff of the Year
Georgetown ^
 
All-BIG EAST First Team
Jason Shokalook, Akron, Jr., F ^
Jackson Castro, Creighton, Jr., M
Giorgio Probo, Creighton, Sr., M
Jacob Murrell, Georgetown, So., F
Kenny Nielsen, Georgetown, Sr., D ^
Kieran Sargeant, Georgetown, Jr., D
Ryan Schewe, Georgetown, Sr., GK
Marlon Tabora, Georgetown, Sr., M
Brendan McSorley, Providence, Sr., F
Nicolas Fleuriau Chateau, St. John’s, R-Jr., F
Makel Rasheed, Xavier, Sr., D
 
All-BIG EAST Second Team
Jonas Buechte, Akron, Jr., D
Malik Henry, Akron, Jr., D
Palmer Ault, Butler, So., F
Nicolas Tomerius, UConn, So., M
Alfie Pope, Creighton, Gr., F
Edrey Caceres, Marquette, Sr., M
Diego Batista, Providence, So., M
Lukas Burns, Providence, Sr., GK
Gevork Diarbian, Providence, Sr., F
Macoumba Ba, St. John’s, Jr., M
Dylan Kropp, Xavier, So., D
 
All-BIG EAST Third Team *
Alejandro Varela, Akron, Sr., M
Pierce Bateson, UConn, So., M
Kieran Chandler, UConn, Fr., D
Scott Testori, UConn, Jr., F
Mark O’Neill, Creighton, Sr., D
Gandhi Cruz, DePaul, Sr., GK
Noeh Hernandez, DePaul, Fr., M
Kyle Linhares, Georgetown, Sr., M
Zach Zengue, Georgetown, So., M/F
Brooklyn Merl, Marquette, Gr., F
Cole Dewhurst, Providence, Jr., D
Alec McLachlan, St. John’s, So., GK
James Boote, Seton Hall, Gr., M
 
*Denotes a Tie in Voting
^Unanimous Vote