FIRST TEAM

PLAYER

SCHOOL

POSITION

Brenden Gottlieb

Bacon

Forward

Cameron McCormack

Griswold

Forward

Chad Barrett

Lyman

Midfield

Patrick Hallahan

Old Lyme

Midfield

Tim Murray

Lyman

Midfield

Connor Leeman

Montville

Midfield

Emmett Schaeffer

NFA

Midfield

Patrick Cole

Old Lyme

Defense

Jeff Kelly

Bacon

Defense

Nick Koss

Bacon

Defense

Cameron McFarlane

NFA

Goalie

SECOND TEAM

PLAYER

SCHOOL

POSITION

Eddie Lorah

East Lyme

Forward

Zach Nute

Griswold

Forward

Marco Roberto

Waterford

Forward

Colin Basler

Old Lyme

Midfield

Chad Ferro

Bacon Academy

Midfield

Josh Gustafson

Lyman Memorial

Midfield

Gavin Neuendorf

NFA

Midfield

Adam Ensley

Ledyard

Defense

Kris Knerr

Griswold

Defense

Jake Piersa

Montville

Defense

Garrett Becker

Waterford

Goalie

*******

Player of the Year: Tyler Leeman (Montville)

What They're Saying About Tyler

"Tyler's a special player and those types of players don't come around very often. I think he's the best player in the state. He's been double- and triple-teamed all year. Even with all that attention, he finds a way, with goals and assists. This team has bought into a mentality and Tyler is the kid leading it."

-Colin Delaney, Montville coach

"We had difficulty containing Tyler this season. He scored eight goals in three games against us and in the state game he scored three in the first half. He could have had more but he was dropped into the midfield in the second half. He finished well when he got near the goal and I liked the way he moved off the ball. He made it difficult for our backs to mark him. He is a big kid who led his team to a state title. He really picked up his game when it mattered most."

-Paul deCastro, Stonington coach

What You Need To Know About Tyler

Earlier in the fall during his team's CIAC Class M semifinal game against Ellington, Tyler Leeman came face to face with himself. It seems some of the Ellington fans in the student section made Tyler Leeman masks to hand out and students chanted his name throughout what would become the Indians' signature victory of the season, a 1-0 win in which Leeman scored a second-half goal that ultimately propelled Montville to a share of the Class M championship, the program's first. "That was strange," Leeman said. "It was very interesting. I didn't expect to see that." But that is what the elite players see and what they have to get used to. At just 17 years old, Leeman was named the Connecticut Player of the Year by the Connecticut Soccer Coaches' Association. A two-time Class M all-state and All-New England selection, Leeman earned All-American status this year after scoring 38 goals. "I try to stay humble," Leeman said. "You never want to seem cocky. People come up and congratulate me and I appreciate it very much, but I try not to let it get to me. Right now I'm a big fish in a small pond. Next year is going to be the complete opposite, so it's nice to enjoy it now." Next year, the single-season and career school leader in goals and points will take his considerable talents up the road to Storrs, where he'll play for UConn. "I took my official visit in October and loved everything I saw and could see myself fitting in there," Leeman said. "I liked everything about it."

- Owen Poole

*******

Coach of the Year: Colin Delaney (Montville)

What They're Saying About Colin

"He's tremendous. He's done nothing but improve in four years as a coach. Everything he does, from scouting, to pregame reports, to practice, to games. He just makes you want to give 100 percent back because you see him giving everything he has to the team."

-Tyler Leeman, Montville senior

What You Need To Know About Colin

In seven years as the head coach of Montville, Colin Delaney's program has steadily improved into an Eastern Connecticut Conference force. This year, the Indians made themselves into a force on the state level, earning the program's first state championship when they shared the Class M crown with Bethel. They set a school record with 18 wins, shared the ECC Medium title, advanced to the ECC tournament semifinals and finished the season ranked No. 1 in the state Small/Medium poll. The rise of the program began in 2005, when the Indians advanced to the state tournament semifinals for the first time. Since, Delaney's teams have maintained that success and continued improving, and he was named the CSCA Coach of the Year this season. He has coached 17 All-ECC players, six all-state players, two All-Americans and 16 players who went on to play in college. Delaney played under Paul Christensen at East Lyme and later at the University of Delaware. He is a social studies teacher at Tyl Middle School in Montville and is married to Allison Delaney, the Montville girls' coach. They have two children.

- Owen Poole

*******

ATHLETE PROFILES

• Lyman Memorial senior Chad Barrett was named All-ECC, Class S all-state and All-New England this season. He scored 36 points (14 goals, eight assists) and graduates with a perfect 46-0 record in the ECC Small, voted the division's top player as a senior. Barrett helped lead the Bulldogs to three state semifinal games and one title game appearance. Voted team MVP, he is deciding between Southern Connecticut, Eastern Connecticut and Western New England.

• Old Lyme senior defender Patrick Cole played every minute of every game for the past three seasons and was a key defender in Old Lyme's state championship season (2008), as well as two regular season Shoreline championship teams and one conference tournament championship. Cole's teams went 50-9-3 in those three years. He was a first-team Shoreline Conference pick as a senior and was voted the team's MVP, as well as playing in the Senior Bowl. Cole is looking at the Coast Guard Academy, Providence College, Boston College and Cornell.

• Bacon Academy senior forward Brenden Gottlieb is a four-year starter who scored 12 goals for the ECC Medium Division champion Bobcats, who also won the first ECC tournament this season. An honor roll student and an All-ECC selection, Gottlieb scored 31 goals in his career.

• Old Lyme senior midfielder Patrick Hallahan had nine goals and three assists from his center midfield position. He handled most of Old Lyme's free and direct kicks and was a first-team Shoreline Conference selection. Hallahan was named Class S all-state and All-New England as a senior and was the MVP of the Senior Bowl. He is a high honors student looking at Hartford, UMass, Wentworth, Syracuse and Northeastern.

• Bacon Academy senior defender Jeff Kelly anchored a defense that allowed just 13 goals this year - including five in the final 15 games - and had 11 shutouts. He scored twice, both on penalty kicks, and was named All-ECC as a junior and senior. An All-ECC and Class L all-state pick this year, Kelly is deciding between Suffolk, Lesley and Southern Connecticut.

• Bacon Academy senior Nick Koss is a three-year starter who was named All-ECC and all Class L all-state as a senior. Voted the season MVP of the first team to ever win the ECC tournament, he had nine goals and 10 assists and was usually given the assignment of marking the opposing team's best player.

• Montville sophomore midfielder Connor Leeman set a school record with 20 assists, adding seven goals to take some pressure off older brother Tyler. A captain of Montville's Class M state championship team, he was an All-ECC pick and a Class M all-state selection. Also on the basketball team, Leeman is ranked seventh in his class with a 4.33 GPA.

• Griswold senior forward Cameron McCormack helped the Wolverines to the program's best finish ever, a Class M semifinal berth. Griswold lost just twice during the regular season, both to Small Division champion Lyman Memorial. McCormack had 24 goals and 18 assists and was named his team's offensive MVP, as well as to the All-ECC first team. McCormack is deciding between Mitchell, Becker, Southern Connecticut and Nichols.

• NFA sophomore keeper Cameron McFarlane had nine shutouts this season - including the final four regular season games - and played every minute of the season in goal. He allowed just eight goals to ECC opponents during the regular season and 13 overall. McFarlane, who started as a freshman, plays for Oakwood Academy and is an honor roll student.

• Lyman Memorial senior Tim Murray completed one of the best four-year careers ever at the school, winning four straight ECC Small titles and going 46-0 within the division. Murray played in three state tournament semifinals and one title game. As a senior, Murray had 13 goals and 10 assists and played all over the field. A four-year starter and two-time All-Area pick, he's a two-time Class S all-state pick who will play at Sacred Heart or Southern Connecticut next year.

• NFA senior midfielder Emmett Schaeffer was a key cog for the Large Division champions. He had nine goals and 10 assists for the ECC tournament runner-up Wildcats and was voted the division's best player this year. An honor roll student, Schaeffer is a two-time All-ECC pick and a Class LL all-state pick as a senior. He's also a member of the highly successful indoor and outdoor track teams at NFA, as well as a member of Southeast Premier Soccer Club. He'll play at Stonehill College in the fall.