PORTLAND, Oregon – Cal State LA's Oliver Diaz added the title of West Region Player of the Year to his long list of accolades, as the Division II Conference Commissioners Association released its 2023 all-region teams on Tuesday.
The 2023 California Collegiate Athletic Association Player of the Year, Diaz piloted the Golden Eagles to the conference crown after going 17-1-2 overall and 10-1 in CCAA matches. Diaz started all 19 matches for CSULA, scoring four goals and adding a pair of assists. Diaz was among four all-region selections for the Golden Eagles, with forward Bryan Ortega and defender Andrew Portis earning first-team and goalkeeper Julian Aadlandsvik garnering second-team recognition. Ortega scored 10 goals and added four assists to propel the Golden Eagles' offense, while Portis started 17 matches on a back line that produced 15 shutouts while allowing just eight goals all season.
Great Northwest Athletic Conference Player of the Year Devin O'Hea was a first-team selection, after leading Simon Fraser to the regular-season title with a record of 11-5-2 overall and 8-2-1 in conference matches. O'Hea scored nine goals in his final collegiate campaign, including a stretch of seven consecutive matches finding the back of the net. GNAC Defensive Player of the Year Niko Papakyriakopoulos was the Red Leafs' other first-team pick, after starting all 18 matches and helping SFU to six shutouts.
Diego Grande of Dominican, the PacWest Conference Player of the Year, was a first-team all-region selection after leading his league with 13 goals scored. Grande's phenomenal season included a four-goal effort against Academy of Art on Oct. 21, and he scored nine of his goals across the Penguins' final seven games to help them finish in fourth place with a record of 8-5-4 overall and 6-2-2 in PWC play.
Stanislaus State forward Tyler Tipton tied for the west-region lead with 14 goals scored, and was a first-team all-region selection. Tipton found the net in 9 of 18 matches, delivering multi-goal performances on five occasions.
PacWest champion Point Loma featured a pair of first-team all-region selections, with defender Milo Libby and midfielder Marlon Buck being recognized. Libby was named the PacWest Defender of the Year after starting 16 matches on a back line that notched eight shutouts and allowed just four goals across the final 10 matches of the season. Buck contributed all over the pitch, starting 10 matches and delivering seven goals and four assists.
Anthony Morales was a mainstay in the midfield for Concordia Irvine, starting all 14 matches and producing nine goals and four assists to earn first-team all-region. The other first-team midfielder was Janos Kommerling of Cal State Monterey Bay, who started all 21 matches while scoring six goals - two game-winners - and adding six assists.
A runner-up finish in the CCAA standings for Cal Poly Pomona (14-1-5, 8-1-2 CCAA) had a lot to do with first-team all-region defender Cesar Ruvalcaba, who didn't miss a match in his third season with the Broncos. The senior scored three goals and added four assists from his spot on the back line, on his way to being named the CCAA Defender of the Year.
Chico State's Emanuel Padilla emerged as the top goalkeeper in the region, after posting a save percentage of 84.3, a goals-against average of .648 and totaling nine shutouts for the Wildcats. The CCAA Goalkeeper of the Year had a season-high six saves on four different occasions throughout the fall.
2023 D2 CCA ALL-WEST REGION TEAMS
PLAYER OF THE YEAR: Oliver Diaz, Cal State Los Angeles
FIRST TEAM
F - Tyler Tipton, Stanislaus State (Sonora, Calif.)
F - Devin O'Hea, Simon Fraser (North Vancouver, B.C.)
F - Diego Grande, Dominican (Pacifica, Calif.)
F - Bryan Ortega, Cal State LA (Los Angeles, Calif.)
M - Oliver Diaz, Cal State LA (Hawthorne, Calif.)
M - Anthony Morales, Concordia University Irvine (Orange, Calif.)
M - Janos Kommerling, Cal State Monterey Bay (Dusseldorf, Germany)
M - Marlon Buck, Point Loma (Vienna, Austria)
D - Cesar Ruvalcaba, Cal Poly Pomona (South Gate, Calif.)
D - Niko Papakyriakopoulos, Simon Fraser (New Westminster, B.C.)
D - Andrew Portis, Cal State LA (Temecula, Calif.)
D - Milo Libby, Point Loma (El Dorado Hills, Calif.)
G - Emanuel Padilla, Chico State (Santa Rosa, Calif.)
SECOND TEAM
F - Jim Wagenaar, Northwest Nazarene (Den Bosch, Netherlands)
F - Michael Hennessy, Simon Fraser (Vancouver, B.C.)
F - Juan Salazar, Point Loma (Medellin, Colombia)
F - Paul Roger Henschke, Cal Poly Pomona (Berlin, Germany)
M - Melvyn Perez, Cal Poly Pomona (Los Angeles, Calif.)
M - Yahir Ocampo, Western Oregon (Aloha, Ore.)
M - Adrian Fontanelli, Chico State (Novato, Calif.)
M - Milan Diklic, Point Loma (Meyzieu, France)
D - Preston Moll, Chico State (Cameron Park, Calif.)
D - Koki Hamada, Hawai'i Hilo (Tokyo, Japan)
D - Louie Galdamez, Dominican (San Jose, Calif.)
D - Sebastiano Silvetti, Western Washington Fr. Bergamo, Italy)
G - Julian Aadlandsvik, Cal State LA (Oslo, Norway)
DIVISION 2 CONFERENCE COMMISSIONERS ASSOCIATION
The D2 CCA encourages and promotes Division II athletics and high standards of sportsmanship as important elements of high education. The D2 CCA is a key communications link among the conferences as they discuss views, policies and regulations that impact NCAA Division II athletics and works closely with the NCAA as a communications channel to NCAA Division II member colleges and universities.
The D2 CCA Player of the Year award and all-region teams are nominated and selected by members of the region's athletics communications staffs. The 13 members of the All-West Region first team will now be placed on the national ballot for All-America consideration. The All-America teams will be released Wednesday, Dec. 6.
