Chiefs recognized for historic season
Waubonsee Community College’s Men’s Soccer team was recently recognized for their historic 2017 season by the Illinois Skyway Collegiate Conference (ISCC), the NJCAA Region IV and the NJCAA National Soccer Committee. The Chiefs had an unprecedented 13 members honored with post-season awards. Leading the way was midfielder Luis Correa-Cabral who was named an NJCAA Division I Third Team All-American. A dozen others also received awards including striker Reuel Erastus-Obilo, who was tabbed the ISCC Player of the Year, and keeper Devin Hernandez, who was named the Region IV Tournament Most Valuable Player. Joining them were midfielders Ricardo Sanchez Jr., Marcos Carrasco, Alan Camarena, Sergio Simental, Jose Gallegos, Zo Khaliq and Jose Munoz; along with defenders Angel Mejia and Edgar Caro. Head coach Brett Suhayda was chosen the ISCC and Region IV Coach of the Year after leading the Chiefs to the NJCAA Division I National Tournament for the first time in school history.
Correa-Cabral, a sophomore from West Chicago, is the fourth Chiefs’ player to be named an NJCAA All-American in the last six years. Waubonsee’s co-captain was also selected to the All-Region Championship Division Team and the All-ISCC First Team. Correa-Cabral tied for the team lead in assists with 13 which tied him for 13th nationally among all NJCAA Division I players. In addition, he netted 20 goals on the season which tied him for 18th nationally in that category. Correa-Cabral’s 53 points placed him 12th in the nation, and he was second nationally by managing 70 shots on goal. The Chiefs’ midfielder registered five game-winning goals, tying him for 20th nationally.
Sophomore striker Erastus-Obilo helped lead the Chiefs to their second straight ISCC title on his way to being named the conference’s top player. The sophomore from Waubonsie Valley High School led the Chiefs with 23 goals scored, tying him for ninth most nationally. Erastus-Obilo was also chosen to the All-Region Champions Division Team helping the Chiefs win their second straight Region IV title. Born in Nigeria and raised in Great Britain, Erastus-Obilo recorded a dozen assists and his 58 points tied him for ninth among all NJCAA Division I players. Additionally he was named the NJCAA Division I Player of the Week for the third week of September scoring six goals in three Waubonsee victories during that span.
Hernandez, the Chiefs’ undersized keeper, came up big when they needed him most in the Region IV Tournament. On the season he tallied three shutouts, including the Region IV title match when fourth-seeded Waubonsee downed top-seeded Moraine Valley in penalty kicks after 110 scoreless minutes of play. The freshman from Oswego High School registered 86 saves on his way to garnering 11 wins while manning the Chiefs’ goal, earning him All-ISCC Second Team honors.
Sanchez, a freshman from Aurora East High School, was also named to the All-Region Champions Division Team and was an All-ISCC First Team selection. He scored a dozen goals and had four assists as the Chiefs’ third scoring option. The midfielder also booked five game-winning goals on the season.
Despite missing the Chiefs first nine matches of the season, Carrasco was tabbed an All-ISCC First Teamer. The freshman from Morelia, Mexico’s Instituto de la Nacion scored six goals, had 10 assists and managed 28 shots on goal in just 15 matches played.
Camarena, a freshman from Streamwood High School, also netted six goals and tied for the team lead in assists with 13. An All-ISCC First Team selection, Camarena gave the Chiefs five players with 20 or more points on the season.
Caro helped anchor a Chiefs’ defense that allowed two or less goals in 17 matches, earning All-ISCC First Team honors. The freshman from Aurora East High School also scored a goal and had three assists from his left side defensive position.
Gallegos, a freshman Aurora West High School, scored the Chiefs’ first ever goal at the National Tournament in a loss to Mercer County (NJ) Community College. The midfielder was an All-ISCC Second Team selection, recording three goals and four assists this past fall.
A freshman from Oswego East High School, Mejia was chosen to the All-ISCC Second Team. The defender helped Waubonsee register eight shutouts on the season, tying the Chiefs’ for 15th nationally among all NJCAA Division I squads.
Another freshman, Simental scored three goals and had two assists on his way to also being named to the All-ISCC Second Team. The freshman from Aurora East High School was part of a Chiefs crew that scored 86 goals on the season.
Khaliq, a native of Toronto, Canada, was also tabbed All-ISCC Second Team. The graduate of Fletcher Meadows High School scored a goal and had five assists on the season from his center midfield position.
Munoz, a freshman Aurora West High School, booked three goals and an assist as yet another Chief named to the All-ISCC Second Team.
Head coach Brett Suhayda, an Oswego High School alumnus, guided the Chiefs to a 6-1 mark in ISCC play to win the league title for the second straight year and fourth time overall. In his ninth year at the helm of Waubonsee’s program, Suhayda’s teams have reached the Final Four of the Region IV Tournament five times, winning three titles. Over the last six season Suhayda had directed the Chiefs to 93 wins, including a 32-8-2 mark in ISCC action. Earlier this fall he garnered his 100th coaching victory at Waubonsee when the Chiefs downed Malcolm X College.
