St. John's University Athletics
St. John's Chris Wingert Named Winner of M.A.C. Hermann Trophy
1/9/2004 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Jan. 9, 2004
St. Louis, Mo. - St. John's University senior defender Chris Wingert (Babylon, N.Y.) was named the 36th winner of the M.A.C. Hermann Trophy, honoring the top player in Division I soccer, it was announced tonight by the Missouri Athletic Club.
Wingert was selected as the winner of the Hermann Trophy - college soccer's version of the Heisman Trophy - over Maryland forward Sumed Ibrahim and Coastal Carolina's Joseph Ngwenya by members of the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
In winning the award, the Red Storm's captain becomes the first player in Division I men's soccer history to win the Hermann Trophy and the NSCAA Scholar-Athlete Award in the same season.
"This is one of the greatest thrills of my life," Wingert said. "When I came to St. John's, I wanted to play at the highest level of college soccer I could. I had a tremendous opportunity to learn under someone like Coach (Dave) Masur, and I earned a great education at the same time.
"To be recognized for my athletic abilities and my academics means a lot to me. I extend my thanks to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America, and to the Missouri Athletic Club, for bestowing me with these honors.
The Red Storm finished the 2003 season with a 17-6-3 record and were ranked No. 2 in the country after losing, 2-1, to Indiana in the NCAA National Championship game. It was the second time in three years the team advanced to the NCAA College Cup. St. John's was the top-seeded team in the league after winning its 11th BIG EAST Championship (combined regular season and tournament) in the last 12 years
The NSCAA Scholar-Athlete Award was one of two national awards for Wingert this season, as he was also named the College Sports Information Directors of America Academic All-American of the Year.
 Missouri Athletic Club's President Nick Lamb with Chris Wingert.  | |
Wingert, the BIG EAST Conference's Defensive Player of the Year for the second-straight season, has been a dominant force in the BIG EAST and in college soccer since his arrival on campus in 2000.
This year, he was tabbed as the league's preseason defensive player of the year and helped St. John's register a league-high 11 shutouts and limit conference opponents to eight goals in 10 games. He was named the league's defensive player of the week three times and earned national player of the week honors from both Soccer America and CollegeSoccerNews.com.
Off the field, he has been equally as successful. A communication arts major with a 3.79 grade-point average, he was named to the College Sports Information Directors of America (CoSIDA) Academic All-District I team before earning the national award. A member of St. John's prestigious President's Society, Wingert was a CoSIDA Academic All-American first team selection in 2002, and earned third team honors in 2001.
He led the Red Storm to the No. 1 national ranking in the country last year as the team went 13-3-5, reached the BIG EAST semifinals and advanced to the Sweet Sixteen of the NCAA Tournament for the seventh-straight year. Wingert was named the BIG EAST's Defensive Player of the Year and earned first-team All-American honors from the National Soccer Coaches Association of America.
In 2001, when St. John's won the BIG EAST Tournament Championship and advanced to the NCAA Final Four with a 17-3-3 record, Wingert was a first-team All-BIG EAST selection. As a freshman, he helped the team to the NCAA Tournament and was a BIG EAST All-Rookie selection.
Wingert is the first player in St. John's history to capture the award and the fourth player from the BIG EAST Conference, joining Alexis Lalas of Rutgers (1991), Joe Morrone of Connecticut (1984) and Chris Gbandi of UConn (2000). Wingert is also one of only three winners who played for a Metropolitan New York School, joining Long Island's Dov Markus, who won the inaugural award in 1967, and Columbia's Amr Aly, who won in 1984.
In addition, Wingert is one of four St. John's student-athletes to earn National Player of the Year honors, joining men's basketball players Walter Berry and Chris Mullin, and fencer Ivan Lee.