Devin Bening of Occidental College and
Niclas Ulrich of Pomona-Pitzer Colleges landed the SCIAC Athlete of the Year awards for 2025 atop the All-Conference teams.
Bening led the line as a sophomore for a potent Oxy offense that led the conference in goals scored with 27, seven more than the runners-up. The forward topped the individual conference scoring chart with eight goals in 11 games on a conversation rate of more than 25 percent with more than 50 percent of shots on target hitting the back of the net.
Ulrich's impact on both ends of the field was crucial in the Sagehens climbing out from ninth place last year to finish a single point shy of sharing the regular season title. Not only did Pomona-Pitzer surrendered the fewest goals in the league at a mere 1.0 per game, but the center back also recorded three goals and three assists to top the team with nine points.
Newcomer of the Year recognition went to
Shaw Nishizawa, a formidable 1-on-1 defender who led California Lutheran Unievrsity in minutes played while also holding the rare honor of being voted team captain as a rookie.
Ishaan Mantripragada of Caltech was recognized with the Award of Distinction, which recognizes a senior for examplary achievement through their higher education experience including significant contributions to their school and serving their community. It emphasizes sportsmanship, balancing athletic excellence with academic achievement, modeling positive behavior and inclusion. A two-year captain and superb mentor for younger players and compatriots alike, Mantripragada has showcased model behavior on and off the field, earning First Team All-SCIAC honors all four years while never receiving more than one yellow card in a single season. A computer science major and data science minor with a 4.0 grade-point average, the senior's research experience includes working to improve Phase Contrast MRI reconstruction using deep learning at Stanford University, an AI intern at cybersecurity start-up Balbix, and software engineer at LinkedIn. On campus, Mantripragada is the Vice President of his House and a teaching assistant in the computer science department.
First-year head coach Clint Moore and the Sagehens bench were dubbed the Coaching Staff of the Year after more than doubling last season's point total from nine (six points out of the SCIAC Tournament picture) to 20 and a single point out of tying for the regular season title. The defense improved from surrendering 26 goals in 12 games to allowing just one per game in a 2025 season that proved to be the most competitive top-to-bottom on record in the conference.
Caltech and Oxy tied for the conference lead with three First Team honorees, while the Tigers also tied the University of La Verne with five total selections. The University of Redlands landed a pair of players on each team, followed by Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges picking up three Second Team bids. Whittier College enjoyed two First Team selections while Chapman University had one honoree on each squad and CLU picked up a single First Team choice. Mantripragada is the only four-time First Team honoree in this class, though two others received All-Conference recognition all four years as teammate Etienne Casanova was tabbed to a third First Team while Ulrich returned to the First Team. Oxy's Vicente Navarro and Anders Beckton of Redlands each repeated on the First Team, which makes for a third career All-SCIAC honor for the former as it does for Whittier's Rowan Slater, who made the step up from Second Team last season along with teammate Jack Hindmarsh, 2024 Newcomer of the Year Matthew Luk (Caltech) and Connor Claborn (UR). Oxy's Aden Aley, Chapman's Alex Glynn and John Laidlaw (CMS) all repeated on the Second Team.
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Offensive Athlete
of the Year
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Defensive Athlete
of the Year
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Newcomer
of the Year
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Award
of Distinction
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Coaching
Staff of the
Year
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Devin Bening
Occidental
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Niclas Ulrich
Pomona-Pitzer
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Shaw Nishizawa
Cal Lutheran
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Ishaan Mantripragada
Caltech
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Clint Moore
Pomona-Pitzer
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| First Team All-SCIAC |
| Name |
Institution |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Devin Bening |
Occidental |
So. |
F |
Woodland Hills, Calif. |
| Niclas Ulrich |
Pomona-Pitzer |
Sr. |
CB |
Chevy Chase, Md. |
| Hector Duenas-Pena |
La Verne |
Sr. |
GK |
Moreno Valley, Calif. |
| Cormac Galvin |
Chapman |
Sr. |
CB |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Cooper Gersch |
Occidental |
Jr. |
CB |
Mercer Island, Wash. |
| Jack Hindmarsh |
Whittier |
So. |
LB |
Kristianstad, Sweden |
| Joshua McCown |
La Verne |
Sr. |
CB |
Venice, Calif. |
| Etienne Casanova |
Caltech |
Sr. |
CAM |
Saratoga, Calif. |
| Connor Claborn |
Redlands |
Sr. |
M |
Santa Clarita, Calif. |
| Vicente Navarro |
Occidental |
Sr. |
CDM |
Pacoima, Calif. |
| Rowan Slater |
Whittier |
Sr. |
CAM |
Fort Collins, Colo. |
| Anders Beckton |
Redlands |
Jr. |
F |
Seattle, Wash. |
| Reese Kane |
Cal Lutheran |
Sr. |
F |
Scottsdale, Ariz. |
| Matthew Luk |
Caltech |
So. |
F |
Bel Air, Md. |
| Ishaan Mantripragada |
Caltech |
Jr. |
F |
Saratoga, Calif. |
| Second Team All-SCIAC |
| Name |
Institution |
Year |
Position |
Hometown |
| Alex Glynn |
Chapman |
Sr. |
GK |
San Diego, Calif. |
| Chris Chow |
Pomona-Pitzer |
Sr. |
D |
Hong Kong |
| Benjamin Evans |
Redlands |
Jr. |
CB |
Bend, Ore. |
| Atticus English |
CMS |
Fy. |
FB |
San Francisco, Calif. |
| Zeno Bang |
CMS |
So. |
D |
Ramsey, N.J. |
| Aiden Aley |
Occidental |
Sr. |
M |
Ross, Calif. |
| Alexander Bastidas |
La Verne |
Sr. |
M |
Pasadena, Calif. |
| Zachary Darmanyan |
Redlands |
Jr. |
CAM |
San Diego, Calif. |
| Aidan MacLennan |
Pomona-Pitzer |
Jr. |
M |
Bend, Ore. |
| Kevin Arreola |
La Verne |
Sr. |
F |
Pacoima, Calif. |
| John Laidlaw |
CMS |
Sr. |
F |
Encinitas, Calif. |
| Ayden Rieke-Wey |
Occidental |
So. |
F |
Seattle, Wash. |
| Diego Soto |
La Verne |
Sr. |
F |
Baldwin Park, Calif. |
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