A-League Statistical Awards Announced

Published on September 9, 2004 under USL First Division (USL-1) News Release


TAMPA, FL – United Soccer Leagues announced Thursday the A-League's 2004 Statistical Award winners, honoring the Scoring and Goal Scoring Champions, Assist Leader and Goalkeeper of the Year.

Goalkeeper of the Year

Montreal Impact goalkeeper Greg Sutton had a record year, tying former Rochester Rhinos netminder Pat Onstad's 1998 league record of 16 shutouts in a season as the Impact went on to break the 1998 team shutout record of 18 held by the Rhinos.

Sutton's league-low goals against average of 0.54, which earned him the Goalkeeper of the Year honor, is the third lowest in A-League history for a season of 20 or more games. Onstad, last year's Major League Soccer Goalkeeper of the Year, finished the 1998 campaign at 0.50 for the second lowest mark with current US National Team goalkeeper Kasey Keller holding the record at 0.36 for his 1989 season with FC Portland.

Scoring Champion

Virginia Beach forward Dante Washington became the second straight player to finish as the Scoring Champion from a team that did not qualify for the postseason. Last year, Pittsburgh's Thiago Martins was the first player to do so since 1990 when Chance Fry of the Seattle Storm led the league in points. Washington, who was third last season, finished the season with 40 points on 17 goals and six assists.

Goal Scoring Champions

Washington also finished in a tie with Portland's rookie striker Alan Gordon for the Goal Scoring Championship with 17 on the season. Washington was second in goal scoring last season with 18. Gordon's Timbers finished as the regular season champions at 18-7-3 only to exit in the first round of the playoffs in series overtime against the rival Seattle Sounders. Gordon is the third Timbers player to lead the league in goals in three years with McKinley Tennyson and Fadi Afash finishing tied for first with 18 in 2002.

Assist Leader

Gordon's teammate Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar finished as the Assist Leader for the 2004 season with 10 on the season. He finished tied for third last season with nine.

Next week, the individual honors of Rookie of the Year (Tuesday), Defender of the Year (Wednesday), Coach of the Year (Thursday) and Most Valuable Player (Friday) will be announced.

The A-League playoffs continue this weekend with the Conference Finals. The two-leg, aggregate score series will be played Friday and Sunday. The second leg Syracuse at Montreal match on Sunday will be televised LIVE on Fox Sports World at 4:00 pm ET. The A-League Final is Saturday, September 18 and will be broadcast LIVE on Fox Sports World at 7:00 pm Eastern or Pacific depending on location.

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