Men's Soccer | 11/6/2009 4:48:04 PM

ROCHESTER, NY – Senior Jeff Diaz (Brentwood, NY/Brentwood) and junior Dom Colaprete (Spencerport, NY/Spencerport) were named to the 2009 Empire 8 All-Conference first team on Thursday afternoon. Senior Chris Somers (Spencerport, NY/Spencerport) was a second team selection, and junior Bret Dietz (Harrisburg, PA/Bishop McDevitt) earned honorable mention accolades. Diaz was also selected as RIT's Sportsman of the Year, his third consecutive year receiving the award.

Diaz, who was named to the second-team the past two seasons, enjoyed plenty of success throughout the year. He finished the season with seven points, on one goal and five assists. Diaz started in all 17 games for the Tigers, and recorded a point in four of the last seven games. As a senior, he finishes his career appearing in 64 games, scoring five goals and assisting on 16 others. In addition, Diaz was named the RIT Male Athlete of the Week during the week of October 5th, and was named Empire 8 Player of the Week during the week of October 11th.

Colaprete appeared in all 17 games for the Tigers, starting in 16 of them. He led the team in scoring, with seven goals and one assist, for 15 points. He scored a goal in five of the Tigers last seven games, and had a career high four game-winning goals. Colaprete played an essential role in the Tigers success throughout the second half of the season, proving to be an offensive threat. He was named RIT Male Athlete of the Week during the week of September 28th, and the Empire 8 Player of the Week during the week of October 5th.

Somers, a senior captain, was the core of the defensive unit this season. He appeared in all 17 games, and started in 16. He helped the defense hold opponents to a 1.5 goals per game average, while contributing on the offensive end, with one goal and three assists. He received first-team all-conference honors twice, in 2006 and 2007. Somers appeared in 70 games throughout his career, scoring four goals and assisting on seven others. He was named RIT Male Athlete of the Week during the week of October 19th.

Dietz, who finished the year second on the team in scoring, built on an already impressive career at RIT. He closed out the season with two goals and three assists, and was a solid player throughout the season. Named as a captain this season, Dietz showed great leadership and was a threat from all areas of the field. He has started in every game since his arrival to RIT in 2007, and was selected to the Empire 8 Second Team as a sophomore. In addition, Dietz was named to the 2009 CoSIDA/ESPN the Magazine Academic All-District I Men's Soccer Team. This was his second straight year receiving the award.

The Tigers wrapped up their 2009 season with an 8-8-1 overall record, and finished third in the Empire 8, with a record of 5-2-0.