Photo courtesy of FC Tucson
TAMPA, Fla. – FC Tucson’s Afonso Pinheiro has been awarded PDL Player of the Week honors after scoring five goals in two games during Week 11 in the PDL regular season.
Following his two-goal performance against Albuquerque Sol F.C. on July 13, Pinheiro netted a hat trick against the Ventura County Fusion at Kino North Stadium on Saturday.
FC Golden State Force’s Mark Verso earns PDL Team of the Week honors for a second time in three weeks after scoring five goals in two games to help his side earn a berth in the 2016 PDL Playoffs.
PDL Team of the Week
GK – Drew Shepherd, Michigan Bucks: Western Michigan University’s Shepherd recorded his seventh shutout of the regular season en route to helping the Bucks clinch the Great Lakes Division title.
D – Steven James, Carolina Dynamo: West Virginia University’s James played in both of the Dynamo’s wins in Week 11, helping the club clinch a PDL Playoffs berth in a 1-0 win vs. the West Virginia Chaos on Thursday before scoring a goal in the Dynamo’s 6-1 win over Peachtree City MOBA.
D – Mohammed Moro, AC Connecticut: Boston College’s Moro started and scored the first goal for the visitors in their 3-1 win against the Seacoast United Phantoms on Saturday.
D – Daniel Davidson, Kitsap Pumas: Davidson scored a goal in the Pumas’ 3-1 win against Northwest Division winner Calgary Foothills FC on Saturday.
D – Sebastian Pineda, OKC Energy U23: Pineda played all 180 minutes for the Energy U23 in two important road matches against Midland/Odessa Sockers FC, and the defender scored the late game-winner in Saturday’s contest to clinch the Mid South Division title.
M – Moses Danto, WSA Winnipeg: Danto scored the opener in Winnipeg’s 2-2 tie against the St. Louis Lions on Thursday before assisting the second goal in Winnipeg’s contest against Kokomo Mantis FC on Friday.
M – Danny Kirkland, San Francisco City FC: Kirkland scored two goals, including a sensational free kick from the right wing, in a 4-0 result against Burlingame Dragons FC at Kezar Stadium on Friday.
M – Myles Englis, IMG Academy Bradenton: Englis scored three goals during Week 11, including both goals in IMG’s 2-2 tie against The Villages SC, which won the 2016 Southeast Division title, on Saturday.
F – Cyrus Rollocks, TFC Academy: Rollocks scored a hat trick to lead the TFC Academy to a 4-1 win against the Dayton Dutch Lions at the Kia Training Ground on Friday.
F – Afonso Pinheiro, FC Tucson: University at Albany’s Pinheiro scored five goals in two home wins for FC Tucson, including three against the Fusion.
F – Mark Verso, FC Golden State Force: Stanford University’s Verso scored five goals, including three against the Southern California Seahorses, and provided one assist in two wins to help the Force earn a playoff berth in the Western Conference.
Honorable Mentions: WSA Winnipeg: Tobias Hyrich-Krueger; K-W United FC: Sven Koenig; New York Red Bulls U23: Arun Basuljevic; Michigan Bucks: Russell Cicerone; Kokomo Mantis FC: Matt Camargo; Pittsburgh Riverhounds U23: Diego Vieira; Peachtree City MOBA: Todd Fidler; GPS Portland Phoenix: Skyler Milne; Cincinnati Dutch Lions: Christopher Dupont; OC Blues U23: Gerzon Blanco; Palm Beach Suns FC: Renan Troccoli
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