ST. LOUIS – The Missouri State men's soccer team garnered nine all-conference selections, won four specialty awards and placed two players on the All-Freshman team as the Missouri Valley Conference announced its postseason honors Thursday.
 
As the 2020-21 MVC regular-season champions, MSU had five players selected to the All-MVC first team with Aadne Bruseth, Josh Dolling, Kyle Hiebert, Nicolo Mulatero and Kian Yari all landing on the first-team ballot.  Michael Creek, Greg Stratton, Connor Langan and Jack Denton earned a spot on the second team while newcomers Adrian Barosen and Jesus Barea were named to the All-Freshman team. 
 
The Bears collected four of the league's eight specialty awards with Mulatero being named the MVC's first-ever Forward of the Year and Hiebert receiving his second straight Defensive Player of the Year accolade.  The Missouri State coaching staff of head coach Jon Leamy, associate head coach/sport director Michael Seabolt, and assistant coaches Will Lukowski and Phil Woods was recognized as Valley Coaching Staff of the Year.
 
Missouri State was also selected as the MVC's Fair Play Award winner after receiving the fewest penalty cards (4) during all MVC matches this season.
 
Hiebert (Sr., La Salle, Manitoba, Canada) becomes the second player in league history to win back-to-back Defensive Player of the Year honors after Creighton's Matt Allen won consecutively in 2006 and 2007.  The MSU captain has started 65 straight matches, including all 11 matches of 2021 where he has helped the Bears defense post five shutouts.  He added a goal and an assist this season to give him 10 points for his career.
 
Mulatero (Jr. Givoletto, Italy) put together a stellar junior campaign which resulted with him leading the league in points (21), goals (7), assists (7) and game-winning goals (3).  He became the first Missouri State player to total at least seven goals and seven assists in a season since Danny May tallied eight apiece in 2004.  Mulatero recorded his first career brace against Drake on March 22 before adding another two-goal outing against Evansville on March 30.
 
Bruseth (Jr., Batnfjordsøra, Norway) earned his way onto the first-team list after racking up four goals and five assists to his 2021 ledger.  He has scored a goal in four of MSU's past five matches and recorded a three-assist performance against Drake on March 22.  Bruseth ranks second in the MVC with five assists and third with 13 points.
 
Midfielders Dolling (Sr., Liverpool, England) and Yari (So., Manchester, England) have played a key role for an MSU attack that leads the MVC – and is tied for 17th nationally – with 23 goals on the season.  Dolling earns his fourth all-conference distinction after also being named to the first team in 2019, the second team in 2018 and an honorable mention in 2017.  Yari, who was an All-Freshman team selection last season, scored the game-winning goal in MSU's 1-0 overtime win over Bradley on March 18.
 
Along with Hiebert, Creek (Sr., St. Louis, Mo.), Langan (Sr., Petersfield, England) and Stratton (Sr., Marietta, Ga.) represented the veteran Bears defense on the all-conference list with their second-team distinctions.  MSU ranks second in the MVC with a .721 goals against average and five shutouts in 2021.  The Bears held opponents scoreless through the first three matches this season.  Creek has started all 11 matches in goal this year, playing all but 11:24 minutes as MSU's enforcer between the pipes.
 
For the second straight year, Denton (Jr., London, England) receives a second-team nod after providing a dynamic role for the Bears, playing both in the midfield and seeing time at center back.  Despite missing the first two matches while recovering from an offseason injury, Denton has started nine matches and logged 800 minutes.  He scored the game-winning goal against Central Arkansas on April 3.
 
In their debut seasons with the Bears, Barosen (Fr., Bodo, Norway) and Barea (Fr., Cadiz, Spain) have stepped in right away and been mainstays in the starting lineup.  Barosen has started all 11 matches and logged 921 minutes, rounding out the list of the Bears' backline to receive postseason honors.  Occupying the spot atop the MSU formation, Barea has tallied four goals and added four assists to rank fourth in the conference in points (12).  He scored the game-winner versus Bradley on Feb. 27 in his first collegiate match.

After leading the program to back-to-back 10-win seasons, the Bears coaching staff collects its second straight – and fourth overall – Coaching Staff of the Year honor.  Prior to the award switching its recognition to "coaching staff" in 2006, Leamy, who is the league's winningest coach with 111 career victories in MVC play, was named Coach of the Year in 1995, 1997, and 1999.
 
With the long list of Valley honors in tow, top-seeded Missouri State (10-1-0) will host No. 3 Loyola (7-3-2) in the MVC Championship on Saturday, April 17 at 2 p.m. at Betty and Bobby Allison South Stadium.  Admission to the championship match is free with masks and social distancing required for all spectators.  Live stats and a live stream (ESPN+) of the match are available at MissouriStateBears.com.