KANSAS CITY, Mo. - Loyola University Maryland junior Brian Saramago is one of 32 NCAA Division I soccer players named to the 2018 Men's MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List, as announced by the United Soccer Coaches and the Missouri Athletic Club.

"The Hermann Trophy is one of the most prestigious awards in college soccer," head coach Steve Nichols said. "To have a player on the watch list is an incredible honor for our program and well deserved for Brian, as he's one of the top goal scorers in the NCAA."
 
Saramago, a forward from New Hyde Park, New York, is coming off a summer in which he earned PDL All-Eastern Conference Team accolades after leading the New York Red Bulls U23 squad with 11 goals in 11 games.
 
For the Greyhounds, Saramago has twice been named to the All-Northeast Region Team, while he's also a two-time All-Patriot League First Team selection. The 2016 Patriot League Rookie of the Year and one of just two freshmen named to the All-Northeast Region team that year, he's led the Greyhounds with 42 points over the course of the last two seasons. He scored 10 goals and added three assists as a freshman and then tallied eight goals and three assists after missing more than four games due to injury last year.
 
Saramago headlined Loyola's first-ever nationally ranked recruiting class in 2016. The Greyhounds' Class of 2020 was ranked 13th by College Soccer News and ultimately led Loyola to the biggest turnaround in Patriot League history, as the squad posted a 6-1-2 record in League play his freshman year after it went winless in 2015. Saramago then helped the Greyhounds capture their first-ever Patriot League Regular Season title last year.
 
The MAC Hermann Trophy, presented by World Wide Technology, is the most prestigious individual award in college soccer and is presented annually to the most outstanding male and female players of hte year. This year's winners will be announced Friday, January 4, 2019, at the Missouri Athletic Club in St. Louis.

Loyola will open its 2018 campaign on Friday, August 24, when it hosts Rutgers at Ridley Athletic Complex. Opening kickoff is scheduled for 7 p.m.