Geneva, N.Y. – Head coach Andrew McMinn and seven student-athletes from the Robert Morris University men's lacrosse team earned Northeast Conference (NEC) postseason accolades at the annual NEC Tournament banquet Wednesday evening.
 
For the second time in his career, McMinn was named NEC Coach of the Year. Following the loss of three of his five leading scorers from 2016, McMinn guided the 2017 Colonials squad to nine regular-season wins, the most for RMU since 2012, and its second consecutive Northeast Conference Tournament appearance.
 
Freshman Ryan Smith was named NEC Rookie of the Year and is the first to earn the major conference accolade in Robert Morris history. He ranks third on the Colonials in goals (20) and fourth in points (28).  Smith collected NEC Rookie of the Week and Player of the Week honors on March 27. He tabbed two game-winning goals this season and added eight assists on the year. Smith was also named to the NEC All-Rookie Team.
 
 Junior Zachary Bryant, sophomore midfield Tyson Gibson, and sophomore goalkeeper Alex Heger were named First Team All-NEC honorees. These mark the first all-conference honors for Bryant and Gibson, and second for Heger after he was named to the All-Rookie Team last season. Bryant ranks second on the team with 21 caused turnovers, already doubling his total from a season ago, and was a key to the defensive unit that was consistently ranked in the top 10 nationally in forced turnovers per game this season. He's collected a season-high 28 ground balls, and picked up a career-high five on two occasions. He caused a career-high five turnovers in an 11-10 overtime win against Mount St. Mary's on March 25.
 
Gibson leads the Colonials with 22 assists, and ranks second on the team with 39 points. He has recorded a point in all but one game this season, and enters the postseason riding a three-game point streak. Gibson is coming off a career performance in which he posted a personal-best five assists and totaled a career-high seven points last weekend against Hobart.  He started in all 15 games this season after he made three starts in 2016 as a rookie.
 
Heger currently ranks No. 1 in the nation in saves per game (12.60), and seventh in save percentage (.564) and leads the NEC in both categories. He's posted a 9-5 record on the season overall, and a 4-2 mark in NEC action. A two-time NEC Defensive Player of the Week, Heger is six saves away from setting a new RMU single-season saves record.
 
Redshirt sophomore attack Matt Schmidt and sophomore long stick midfield Jack Toomb earned Second Team All-NEC accolades. Both are first-time All-NEC award winners. Schmidt leads the Colonials offense with 32 goals and 40 points. He was named NEC Player of the Week for his career-high eight points in Robert Morris' 17-6 win over Wagner. His eight points rank tied for second all-time in RMU single-game history, and his six goals in the same outing rank third. Schmidt has recorded a point in all but one game this season, and enters the postseason having posted a point in the last six games. He's registered multi-point efforts in five of the last six outings. He ranks fifth in the NEC in goals per game (2.13), and is tied for first in the league with four game-winning goals.
 
Toomb ranks third in the NEC in ground balls per game (4.40) and leads the Colonials with 66 on the year. He scored his first career goal in RMU's season opener against a nationally-ranked Penn State squad, and has scored five goals through the regular season. He collected a career-high eight ground balls in a 13-7 win at Saint Joseph's. He ranks third on the team with 17 caused turnovers.
 
Joining Smith on the All-NEC Rookie Team is freshman faceoff specialist Trey Arnold. Arnold went 154-for-339 (.454) in the faceoff X in his first regular season with the Colonials. He ranks second on the squad with 45 ground balls. Arnold scored six goals this season, including a career-high two tallies against Canisius.
 
From 2012 to 2017, 27 Robert Morris men's lacrosse student-athletes have garnered a total of 40 all-conference team awards and six major all-NEC accolades under McMinn, including the coach's two NEC Coach of the Year honors.
 
No. 3 seed Robert Morris begins its quest for a Northeast Conference Championship on Thursday, May 4 against No. 2 seed Bryant at 4 p.m. The championship game is set for Saturday, May 6 at noon.
 

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