Harkes Named MAC Hermann Trophy Finalist
12/14/2016 12:00:00 AM | Men's Soccer
Past MAC Hermann Trophy Winners
By Wake Forest Athletic Communications (@WakeMSoccer)
KANSAS CITY -- Ian Harkes, a senior midfielder and captain on the 2016 Wake Forest men's soccer team, has been named one of three finalists for the 2016 MAC Hermann Trophy.
Harkes is joined as a finalist by Florida Gulf Coast junior forward Albert Ruiz and Maryland sophomore transfer forward Gordon Wild. The three finalists were announced Wednesday morning after voting by NCAA Division I coaches concluded at 11:59 p.m. Tuesday night.
"All I can say is I am honored to be a finalist for the award," Harkes said. "A big thank you to my coaches, teammates and family for helping me grow and develop as a player and for pushing me to be better each and every single day."
Harkes scored five goals and had four assists in 2016. The five goals were three more than his previous career high, and entering his senior season he had previously scored four goals in his first three seasons at Wake Forest. Harkes was a catalyst in leading the Demon Deacons to their second national championship appearance last week, scoring the game-winning goal in double overtime in the national semifinals against Denver on Friday, Dec. 9.
During his senior campaign, Harkes was named ACC Midfielder of the Year, ACC Tournament MVP and NCAA Tournament Offensive Most Outstanding Player. It marks the first time in the ACC's illustrious soccer history a player has earned all three awards in the same season.
While Harkes led the Deacons to the College Cup, Ruiz led the country in goals with 22 this season, which is more goals than 74 Division I programs scored all season. Wild was second in the country with 17 goals, outscoring the program he spent his freshman season at (USC Upstate), which scored 14 goals in 2016. Both FGCU and Maryland, the No. 1 seed in the NCAA Tournament, were eliminated in the second round. FGCU topped South Florida in penalty kicks before falling at North Carolina while Maryland fell 5-4 to Providence after holding a 4-1 lead in the second half.
The Fairfax, Va., native is looking to become Wake Forest's second MAC Hermann Trophy winner in program history. He would follow Marcus Tracy, who earned the honor in 2008. Harkes is also looking to join his father, John Harkes, as a MAC end-of-season honoree. John, a standout performer under Bruce Arena at the University of Virginia, was named the MAC Player of the Year in 1987. From 1986 to 2001, the Missouri Athletic Club gave out the Hermann Trophy and Player of the Year honors before the two merged in 2002. In 1987, the Hermann Trophy was awarded to Bruce Murray, a former Clemson standout who went on to play for the U.S. National Team and retired as the team's all-time leading scorer in 1993.
In being named a finalist, Harkes is the first son of a former MAC honoree to be named a finalist.
"I am extremely excited for Ian for being a finalist for the MAC Hermann Trophy," said Wake Forest head coach Bobby Muuss. "It is the most prestigious award in college soccer and in my opinion he has shown time and again this season he is the best player in our game. His senior campaign is one for the history books and we all couldn't be more excited for him."
This year's winner will be announced January 6, 2017, in conjunction with the 2016 MAC Hermann Trophy Banquet at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.
