FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE CONTACT Evan O’Kelly Director of Communications O: (406) 657-2130 E: evan.okelly@msubillings.edu Wednesday, November 16, 2016 Dragomir receives D2CCA All-Region award
After leading the GNAC with 12 goals this season, senior forward Julien Dragomir earns second-team all-region honors from the D2CCA on Wednesday. BILLINGS, Mont. – After leading the Great Northwest Athletic Conference with 12 goals this season, senior forward Julien Dragomir of the Montana State University Billings men’s soccer team has been named a second-team all-region pick by the Division 2 Collegiate Commissioners Association announced Wednesday. In his first and only season with the Yellowjackets, Dragomir captured GNAC Newcomer of the Year and first-team allconference after leading the team to its third-highest goals total in a single season with 40 overall. “It’s good to see that the recognition Julien is getting stretches beyond our conference,” said MSUB head coach Alex Balog. “I believe he is one of the most dangerous strikers in the west region, so this is well deserved. For the second year in-a-row one of our attackers is voted all-region, which means that our offense is valued in a region with a high level of NCAA DII soccer. I am proud of that.”
Dragomir ended his career with a hat trick on Senior Day, producing his third multi-goal game of the season. He also scored two goals in back-to-back games on Oct. 15 against Northwest Nazarene and Oct. 20 against Concordia at home. Two of Dragomir’s dozen goals counted as game-winners for the ‘Jackets, and he started 13 games while playing in 17 on the year. In addition to finding the net on a regular basis, Dragomir also ranked third on the team with four assists. His 28 total points were the second-most in the GNAC, and he had at least one point in nine of MSUB’s 18 games. Dragomir scored in four straight games from Sept. 22 to Oct. 1, and recorded 14 points in the span of seven games early on in the year. A transfer from the University of Nevada Las Vegas, Dragomir ranked second on the team with 42 shots, and placed 20 on target for a SOG percentage of 47.6. He was one of eight field players to top 1,000 minutes played, as he saw action in 1,173 minutes this season. Simon Fraser University midfielder Adam Jones was tabbed as the D2CCA West Region Player of the Year, after leading the league with 29 points and helping the Clan clinch a GNAC title and No. 1 seed in the west region playoffs. SFU had three first-team all-region selections and two on the second team, and the only other GNAC team represented was Seattle Pacific University with second-team senior defender Davis Karaica. This marks the second year in-a-row the ‘Jackets have had the GNAC Newcomer of the Year and an all-region forward, as Dragomir followed the lead of 2015 selection Ricardo Palomino. MSUB finished the year with a record of 9-6-3 overall, and went 5-4-3 in the GNAC to claim fourth place. The D2CCA award list is voted on by sports information directors in the NCAA west region, which consists of the GNAC, the PacWest Conference, and the California Collegiate Athletic Association. --@MSUBSports | #JacketNation--