KANSAS CITY, Mo. – Coming off the most dominant offensive season in program history, FGCU junior striker Albert Ruiz has been named a semifinalist for the 2016 MAC Hermann Trophy, college soccer’s equivalent of the Heisman Trophy.

Ruiz is one of 15 semifinalists announced by National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) officials Tuesday, as determined by All-America voting conducted by Division I men’s soccer coaches with oversight from the NSCAA D-I Men’s Senior College All-America Committee. The complete list of semifinalists is below.

The national leader in goals (22) and points (49) by a wide margin, Ruiz is believed to be the first player in ASUN Conference history to be named a semifinalist for the award, and is the first player in FGCU history to be named a semifinalist.

The most coveted individual honor in D-I soccer, the MAC Hermann Trophy has been awarded annually since 1967. Three finalists will be determined based on voting by D-I coaches. The finalists will be announced on Dec. 14, with the winner named at the 2016 MAC Hermann Trophy Banquet at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis on Jan. 6.

Ruiz has scored five more goals and has totaled nine more points than any other player in the country this season, in addition to leading all players in goals per game (1.10; next closest: 0.89) and points per game (2.45; next closest: 1.95). Ruiz was lauded as the ASUN Player of the Year, selected as the ASUN Tournament MVP and was named an ASUN First Team member while leading FGCU to the NCAA Tournament Second Round for the first time in 2016.

“It’s a tremendous honor and wonderful recognition for Albert and his family, FGCU and the ASUN,” stated FGCU head coach Bob Butehorn. “Albert pursues excellence and is driven by success not to achieve individual awards like this, but rather to get better and put him and his team in the best position to win each time out. That’s what makes this honor even more rewarding for him, because it’s not something he sets as a goal. He’s a great ambassador for the sport of college soccer, and is someone who perfectly exemplifies what hard work and dedication can accomplish.”

The Barcelona, Spain, native’s 22 goals are the most by a D-I player in a single season since 2012, and the most in the ASUN in more than a decade. Ruiz scored five goals in four postseason games (two ASUN Championship matches; two NCAA Tournament contests) as part of a larger streak of him scoring a goal in eight of FGCU’s final nine games of the year.

Ruiz secured two hat tricks during the regular season, including what is believed to be the fastest in D-I history from the start of the game (9:02 at Rutgers, Sept. 27). He had six games of four or more points, including a program single-game record 7 versus UNCW. Ruiz destroyed the previous single-season program record for goals (7) and points (17).

A three-time National Player of the Week or National Team of the Week selection during the Eagles’ record-setting campaign, Ruiz helped guide FGCU to its 4th ASUN Championship title in just six seasons of D-I postseason eligibility. He also aided in steering the Green and Blue to a program-record #11 NSCAA national ranking during FGCU’s 14-4-3 year, setting the program’s single-season record for wins.

Ruiz converted the game-clinching penalty kick in FGCU’s 3-0 PK win over USF in the NCAA First Round, propelling the Eagles into the Second Round for the first time in program history. He then scored the go-ahead goal in the 72nd minute at North Carolina in the Second Round before the Eagles fell just short in double overtime to the Tar Heels, who are now one win shy of the College Cup.

The Eagles scored at least two goals in every match this past year with the exception of three – and two of those came in the first three outings of the year. Ruiz played a crucial part in that as FGCU was not shut out all year, something that had never happened in the 10-year history of the program.

The only other time an FGCU player has appeared on any MAC Hermann Trophy list was Josey Portillo on the Preseason Watch List in 2011. In total, the ASUN – which dates back to 1979 – had four previous players who were on the Preseason Watch List: David Geno, ETSU (2013), Jonathan Mendoza, Stetson (2012) and Willy Guadarrama, Campbell (2006), but none of them advanced to the semifinalist stage.

In 1967, Robert Hermann, the president of the National Professional Soccer League (NPSL) and the Chairman of the Executive Committee of the NPSL’s successor, the North American Soccer League, established a trophy to annually recognize the top men’s collegiate soccer player. The trophy, named the Hermann Trophy, has been awarded each year since 1967. In 1988, a second Hermann Trophy was inaugurated to recognize the top women’s collegiate player of the year.

For more information regarding the award, visit MACHermannTrophy.org.

2016 Men’s MAC Hermann Trophy Semifinalists

FIRST NAME	LAST NAME	YR.	POS.	SCHOOL	HOMETOWN
Will	Bagrou	Jr.	F	Mercer	Dacula, Ga.
Alex	Crognale	Sr.	D	Maryland	Gahanna, Ohio
Reagan	Dunk	Sr.	D	Denver	Dallas, Texas
Wuilito	Fernandes	Sr.	F	UMass Lowell	Praia, Cape Verde
David	Goldsmith	Sr.	F	Butler	Bristol, England
Julian	Gressel	Sr.	F	Providence	Neustadt an der Aisch, Germany
Ian	Harkes	Sr.	M	Wake Forest	Fairfax, Va.
Jacori	Hayes	Sr.	M	Wake Forest	Bowie, Md.
Tomas	Hilliard-Arce	Jr.	D	Stanford	Matthews, N.C.
Tim	Kubel	Jr.	D	Louisville	Stuttgart, Germany
Miles	Robinson	So.	D	Syracuse	Arlington, Mass.
Albert	Ruiz	Jr.	F	FGCU	Barcelona, Spain
Tanner	Thompson	Sr.	M	Indiana	Granite Bay, Calif.
Gordon	Wild	So.	F	Maryland	Cologne, Germany
Brian	Wright	Sr.	F	Vermont	Ajax, Ont.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-the minute information and a behind-the-scenes look at the FGCU men’s soccer program, follow on Twitter @FGCU_MSoccer, Instagram @FGCU_MSoccer, Facebook /FGCUMSoccer and YouTube /FGCUAthletics.

COACH BUTEHORN
FGCU is led by Bob Butehorn, who has coached six professional players and 63 ASUN All-Conference selections since FGCU started its program in 2007. In just six years of postseason eligibility, Butehorn has guided FGCU to four ASUN Tournament championships and NCAA Tournament appearances – in 2011, 2012, 2014 and 2016 – and won an unprecedented six-straight ASUN regular-season championships from 2010-15. His teams have been ranked nationally on several occasions by multiple media outlets, including a program-record #11 NSCAA ranking in 2016. Having just completed his 14th season as a head coach, Butehorn has a 129-94-28 (.570) overall record, 95-63-24 (.588) mark in his 10 seasons at FGCU and a 52-18-7 (.721) record in ASUN contests.

SUPPORT THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics’ charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.