Senior Stephen Simmons (West Friendship, MD, Mt. St. Joseph)was named USILA Div. III Long Pole Midfielder of the Year announced this week. It is the first Roanoke player to garner this award in the 43-year history of the program.

Simmons joined teammate Sam Love (Berwyn Heights, MD, Dematha)as the 14th player in the storied program to earn a national player of the year award. It is also the first time in school-history that two players have earned a national player of the year honor. He was one of a school-record eight USILA All-Americans following the season.

One of 68 players at Roanoke to be named All-American for the Maroons program, Simmons was tabbed All-American for the second-straight season. A second-team selection a year ago, he also earned first-team All-ODAC for the second-straight year this spring. A three-time all-conference selection (honorable mention in 2008), Simmons was voted team captain during his final campaign and collected 85 groundballs, ranked fourth in the conference. He finished his career with 284, ranked sixth on the all-time list.

The Maroons finished 18-3 on the season, breaking their own school and ODAC record from a year ago. Roanoke was ranked in the top-10 in every weekly poll, a streak that has spanned over the past two seasons. They finished with a #5 ranking and advanced to the NCAA Quarterfinals for the 19th time in program-history. The men finished second in the country in scoring offense, groundballs and assists per game while leading the nation in points per game and scoring margin.