UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. - Junior midfielder Matheus Braga (Rio de Janiero, Brazil) and senior forward Jason Yeisley (Allentown, Pa.) were named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-Great Lakes Region Second Team while junior defender Andres Casais (Caracas, Venezuela) was recognized on the third team.
Braga, Yeisley, and Casais continue the Penn State men's soccer tradition of excellence, as Nittany Lions have been named to academic all-region/district or all-America teams on 64 occasions. For Yeisley, the all-region award is the second of his career after earning third team honors in 2007.
Matheus Braga, a unanimous First Team All-Big Ten selection in 2009, emerged as one of the Big Ten's most dangerous weapons on the attack, totaling a career-high seven goals and team-best seven assists (21 points) on the conference's top scoring offense. He netted three of his seven scores in conference play, including the game winner at Michigan State, Penn State's first Big Ten road victory since 2006 and converted on two penalty kicks. Braga started the year on a tear, totaling eight points off three goals and two assists through the first three games. After leading the team in assists a year ago in his first season as a Nittany Lion, Braga has totaled seven goals and 11 assists (25 points) for his career.
Yeisley excelled in his senior season, leading Penn State to an undefeated regular season home record, a second place finish in the Big Ten, the Big Ten Tournament title game, and a berth in the NCAA Championship. He was a central figure on the Big Ten's top scoring offense, totaling eight goals and five assists to tie for second on the team with 21 points. During the year, Yeisley was named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week (Sept. 7) for the second time in his career and to the Soccer America Team of the Week (Sept. 6), the College Soccer News National Team of the Week (Oct. 4), and to the all-tournament teams for the Wolstein and Penn State Classics. Yeisley's standout season culminated with his selection by the conference coaches as Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and First Team All-Big Ten.
The NSCAA also recently honored Yeisley for his accomplishments in the classroom, selecting him to the Scholar All-America First Team. In November, Yeisley, who graduated last weekend with a degree in management, was named to the 2009 ESPN The Magazine Academic All-America® First Team, as selected by the College Sports Information Directors of America. The three-time captain was also recognized for his achievements on and off the field as the 2009 men's soccer recipient of the Lowe's Senior CLASS Award.
Andres Casais was a mainstay on the Penn State defense this season, representing one of three Nittany Lions to start all 22 games and serving as the team's leader in minutes played, logging over 2,000 for the year. The 2009 First Team All-Big Ten selection was a major part of a defensive unit that recorded nine shutouts. Casais notched his third career point in Penn State's second round NCAA Championship match-up with Maryland, registering an assist on Brian Forgue's (Downingtown, Pa.) first career goal.