Captain Mauro Biello, defender Gabriel Gervais, and goalkeeper Greg Sutton were selected to the first team, while defender Nevio Pizzolitto received second-team honours.
The Impact is the USL team with the greatest number of players selected, both on the first team and overall. The picks were made by the league's coaches and general managers.
This is the sixth time that Biello has been named to the all-star team over his career, which ties a league record. Gervais was honoured for the fourth year in a row on the first team, and he becomes the 16th player in league history to be selected four times. Sutton was named for the third year in a row, and Pizzolitto has been named for a second consecutive year on the second team.
"It's an honor for the club," head coach Nick De Santis said. "It's a nice tribute to all the hard work we've put into the season, individually and collectively. We're proud to see our players being recognized across the league."
Defenders Gervais and Pizzolitto, as well as goalkeeper Sutton, helped the Impact tie a club record by allowing only 15 goals in 28 regular-season games. The Impact earned four consecutive shutouts twice this season, collecting a total of 16.
Once again, Sutton finished the regular season with the lowest goals-against average in the league (0.458), allowing 11 goals in 24 games (2,160 minutes played). He also leads the league in wins (15) and in shutouts (15), one less shutout than last year. He earned his 61st career victory in an Impact uniform by beating the Puerto Rico Islanders 2-1 on August 14th, breaking the previous club mark of 60 wins held by Paolo Ceccarelli.
Forward Biello finished the campaign as the Impact's leading scorer with 21 points, good enough for sixth place overall in the league. Seven of his nine goals scored were game-winners, a new club record. He scored his 60th career goal in an Impact uniform during his 250th career game with the club. And he also became the first player in team history to surpass the 20,000 minutes played mark with the club, establishing the milestone on August 17th in a 1-1 draw against the Puerto Rico Islanders.
The regular season has come to a close for the Impact, but the club is scheduled to play its semi-final series on the 23rd and 25th of September against the winner of the quarter-final series pitting the Seattle Sounders against the Portland Timbers.
The Impact's home game of the playoffs is scheduled for Sunday, September 25th, at 4 pm, at the Claude-Robillard Sports Complex. Tickets are on sale at the Impact offices at 514-328-3668 or via the Admissions Offices at 514-790-1245. Prices remain the same as during the regular season; $15 for reserved seating, $10 (adults) and $5 (children) for general admission.
USL FIRST DIVISION ALL-LEAGUE TEAMS
FIRST TEAM
G Greg Sutton (IMPACT)
D Gabriel Gervais (IMPACT)
D Taylor Graham (Seattle)
D Scot Thompson (Portland)
M Hugo Alcaraz-Cuellar (Portland)
M Mauro Biello (IMPACT)
M Steve Klein (Vancouver)
M Kirk Wilson (Rochester)
F Fabien Dawkins (Atlanta)
F Jason Jordan (Vancouver)
F Mauricio Salles (Puerto Rico)
SECOND TEAM
G Preston Burpo (Seattle)
D Ben Hollingsworth (Charleston)
D Peter Luzak (Richmond)
D Nevio Pizzolitto (IMPACT)
M Darren Caskey (Virginia Beach)
M Jeff Matteo (Minnesota Thunder)
M Rodrigo Rios (Atlanta)
M Petter Villegas (Puerto Rico)
F Dan Antoniuk (Portland)
F Johnny Menyongar (Minnesota)
F Melvin Tarley (Minnesota)
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Source: Patrick Vallée
Info: 514-328-3668 ext. 27
