BLUFFTON, Ohio - The Bluffton University men's soccer team capped off a record-setting 2022 campaign with two First Team All-Heartland Conference selections and one player named Honorable Mention All-HCAC. Dalton Taynor (Troy/Miami East) and Angel Velasco-Urbina (Lexington, Ky./Henry Clay) are the first honorees named first team from Bluffton since 2009! It is just the third time since Bluffton joined the Heartland in 1999 that the Beavers have been accorded with multiple first team selections. Junior Elijah Zimmerman (Archbold) picked up his second consecutive Honorable Mention All-HCAC plaque.
For Taynor it marked his fourth All-HCAC honor in five years with the only miss in the spring of 2021 when injuries limited him to parts of only four matches. He was named 2nd Team in both 2019 and the fall of 2021. Taynor finished 3rd in the conference with nine goals and 22 points. The fifth-year senior ripped a team-high 58 shots, including two game-winners.
Taynor wrapped up his illustrious career 3rd all-time with 44 goals and 97 total points. His 70 matches played are also 1st all-time, while his 68 starts are tied for 2nd. He leaves Bluffton with a school-record eight match winners during his time as a Beaver. Taynor just missed becoming the 5th member of Bluffton's 5,000 minute club, logging 4,745 minutes for the Beavers.
Velasco-Urbina has been a force in the net since he stepped on the Bluffton pitch less than 15 months ago. He followed up his 2nd Team All-HCAC honor as a freshman with a 1st Team selection in 2022. His 85 saves were 3rd in the conference, while his 1.37 goals against average was 4th. Velasco-Urbina finished with four shutouts, second all-time to his 5.5 from 2021.
With just two years under his belt, Angel is already the career record holder with 9.5 shutouts. His 15 wins in goal are tied for second all time, only two victories away from Ryan Thomas who was 17-50-1 during his 68 matches between the pipes. Velasco-Urbina was a two-time HCAC Defensive Player of the Week this season.
Zimmerman had another outstanding year, scoring six goals to go along with his three assists for 15 points in 2022. He led the Beavers with 29 shots on frame and was a perfect 2-of-2 on penalty kicks. His five career match winners are tied for 3rd all time at Bluffton. Zimmerman is currently 11th all time with 39 career points in 45 matches played.
The Bluffton University men's soccer team finished their 2022 season on Saturday, Oct. 29, with a heartbreaking 1-0 OT loss in the opening round of the HCAC tournament. The Beavers finished 7-8-3 and hosted an HCAC tournament match for the first time in school history thanks to a 5-4 mark which was a school record for HCAC victories. It was Bluffton's second HCAC tournament in school history, also their second in 13 months.
Freshman Alex Brown (Delaware/Buckeye Valley) was recognized on the HCAC All-Tournament Team for his work in Bluffton's quarter-final matchup with Manchester.
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