Named the KJCCC's All-West Player of the Year, Felipe D'Agostini highlights six Barton Community College men's soccer players on the post-season conference selection list.
The six-pack of players, along with a deep and talented host of Cougars, finished second in the West Division at 7-2-1. Finding its stride late in the regular season with an eight game unbeaten streak, Barton won three playoff games including knocking off 13th ranked Cowley College 4-1 in the Region VI/Plains District Championship. Making its fifth NJCAA Division I National Championship Tournament, the Cougars went 1-1 in pool play, losing to eventual national champion Salt Lake to conclude the season at 13-3-1.
D'Agostini led the West Division in goals, assists, and points to earn the conference's top award for the second straight season, and for the second straight season was named the division's Player of the Year. The award was also the third straight top award for the Barton program, following the Defensive Player of the Year awards by Ricardo Sepulveda (2019) and Victor Gonzalez (2018).
The sophomore transfer from Cloud County rattled the net a NJCAA 6th most 14 times and delivered a nation 14th best seven assists to compile the 6th most 35 points in Division I soccer. Scoring the winning goal and dishing out the insurance goal in his Cougar debut, D'Agostini went on to produce four multi-goal and one multi-assist performances including five game winners. The native of Porto Alegre, Brazil, earned two NJCAA Player of the Week awards to compliment his three KJCCC weekly honors throughout the season.
Front line attacking mate Gabrielle Privitera earned his second straight first team selection as the lone Barton repeat award winner, being joined by first year Cougars Ivan Zuniga, Manaka Sato, and Yuki Nishigaki. David Lopez rounded out the selections as the sophomore defender was named second team.
Privitera returned for another dynamic season, distributing a conference second best 9 assists despite battling through injuries mid-season. Dealing out an assist in each of the Cougars' opening two games, a healthy Privitera keyed Barton's offense down the stretch with four goals and five assists in four games to finish the year with a team second best 6 goals and 21 points.
Zuniga's stats weren't eye-popping with two goals and an assist but controlled the midfield for the Cougars in not just the offensive side of the field but on the defensive side of the pitch as well.
Defensively, Barton was the top rated unit in allowing just nine goals in the ten conference contests. The wall of denial began with Sato and Lopez limiting opponents to launch just 35 shots at frame as net protector Nishigaki turned back 27 of those in earning consecutive national and conference Goalkeeper of the Week awards to conclude the regular season.
Complete list of KJCCC All-Conference Selections
Barton Selections:
First Team
Felipe D'Agostini (SO) – Forward *Player of the Year
Gabrielle Privitera (SO) – Forward
Ivan Zuniga (FR) - Midfielder
Manaka Sato (FR) – Defender
Yuki Nishigaki (FR) - Goalkeeper
Second Team
David Lopez (SO) – Defender