OVERLAND PARK, Kan. – The list of 30 candidates for the 2021 Senior CLASS Award for men's soccer was released on Thursday and Navy defender
Matt Nocita (Sr., Porter Ranch, Calif.) was amongst the selected group of student-athletes.
To be eligible for the award, a student-athlete must be classified as an NCAA Division I senior or graduate student and have notable achievements in four areas of excellence: community, classroom, character and competition. An acronym for Celebrating Loyalty and Achievement for Staying in School, the Senior CLASS Award focuses on the total student-athlete and encourages students to use their platform in athletics to make a positive impact as leaders in their communities.
Nocita, a history major, owns a 3.58 GPA along with ranking in the top five percent of the Class of 2022 in the Academy's Military Order of Merit. For his academic accomplishments, he was named a CoSIDA Second-Team Academic All-American following last season. The senior has been named to the Naval Academy Superintendent's List three times, Commandant's List four times and Dean's List twice.
On the field, Nocita has compiled a decorated résumé over his three-plus seasons as a member of the Navy men's soccer program. He is a two-time Patriot League Defensive Player of the Year and was named the Patriot League Preseason Defensive Player of the Year prior to the start of the 2021 season.
Additionally, Nocita is a three-time All-Patriot League selection including being named a First-Team All-Patriot League honoree following each of the last two seasons.
In addition to starting all 49 games he's appeared in as an anchor of the Navy defense, Nocita has proved to be a contributor on offense with 12 career points on five goals and two assists.
In assisting the community, Nocita has played an important role in the operations and coaching of Navy men's soccer youth camps.
Nocita becomes the first Navy men's soccer player to reach the initial 30-candidate list for the Senior CLASS Award since Evan Barnes who won the award following the 2007 season.
The 30 candidates announced today will be narrowed to 10 finalists later in the season, and those 10 names will be placed on the official ballot. Ballots will be distributed through a nationwide voting system to media, coaches and fans, who will select one male candidate and one female candidate who best exemplifies excellence in the four C's of community, classroom, character and competition. The Senior CLASS Award winners will be announced during the 2021 NCAA Men's and Women's College Cup® championships in December.
On the 2021 list, Nocita is one of four candidates from the Patriot League joining Stevo Bednarsky (Lehigh), Max Krause (Holy Cross) and Chase Vosvick (Loyola).
