Five Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference men's ice hockey student-athletes have been named semi-finalists for the Joe Concannon Award that is presented annually to the best American-born college hockey player in New England at the NCAA Division II/III level.

Plymouth State forward Josh Woody (Sunderland, Md.) and goalie Gordon Ceasar (Oak Park, Calif.) and Salem State senior Cam Moniz (Seekonk, MA), junior defenseman Brad Jones (Ft. Lauderdale, FL) and junior goaltender Marcus Zelzer (Green Bay, WI) were announced as semi-finalists for the award.

Woody currently has 18 points on the season with nine goals and nine assists which is the 10th best mark in the MASCAC. Ceasar is second in the league in save percentage (.923), goals against average (2.00) and winning percentage (.824).

Moniz leads the Vikings in scoring, and is fourth in the MASCAC with 21 points (14g, 7a). Jones is third in the league in points amongst defenseman with 17 for Salem State, and leads a defensive unit that tops the MASCAC in allowing just 1.81 goals per game. Zelzer sports an impressive 13-1 record, tying for the league lead in wins while owning a .942 save percentage, best in the MASCAC.

This year's list comprises twelve forwards, six versatile defensemen and four outstanding goaltenders including last year's winner, Jamie Murray (Scituate, MA) from nationally-ranked Babson College. The candidates include seven players from the NEHC conference, six from the ECAC Northeast conference; five from the MASCAC conference; three from the NESCAC conference and one from the NE-10 Conference.

In addition to Murray, the NEHC (formerly ECAC East) is represented by senior Mike Vollmin (Wilmington, NC) from Babson College. Number 8 ranked Massachusetts-Boston has three nominees: senior forwards Matt Lemire (Townsend, MA), Frankie DeAugustine (Ramsey, NJ) and junior defenseman Tyler Bishop (Pittsburgh, PA). Senior forward Trevor Fleurent (Biddeford, ME) from the University of New England and junior forward Tyler Piacentini (Weymouth, MA) from Norwich University, round out the conference nominations.

The ECAC Northeast has six nominees including senior forward Tyler Beasley (Indianapolis, IN) and a vreturning nominee in senior goaltender Alex Larson (Madison, AL) from Nichols College. Three other talented forwards making their mark this season include senior Justin Selep (Pittsburgh, PA) from Suffolk University; freshman Parker Wood (Rochester Hills, MI) from first-year NCAA program Endicott College; and junior Connor Bates (Laconia, NH) from Johnson & Wales University. Senior defenseman and repeat semifinalist, Alex Pompeo (Hingham, MA) from Salve Regina rounds out the list for the conference.

The MASCAC Conference is represented by five dynamic players from two schools that have battled near the top all season. Salem State's Moniz, Jones, and Zelzer (Green Bay, WI) are joined by defending conference champions from Plymouth State University, senior forward Josh Woody (Sunderland, MD) and senior goaltender Gordon Caesar (Oak Park, CA)

The semifinalists from NESCAC teams include senior forward Ryan Cole (Anchorage, AK) from defending national champion from Trinity College. Defense shines from the other two nominees including senior Zander Masucci (Far Hills, NJ) from nationally ranked Williams College and senior Sean Kavanaugh (Wilbraham, MA) from Tufts University.

From NCAA Division II ranks and the Northeast-10 Conference is senior forward Brandon Bete (Greenfield, MA) of Assumption College. His 32 points to date lead the Greyhounds and his 21 goals lead the nation at the Division II/III level.

"The continued expansion and growth at the D-II and III levels have made it necessary to broaden our scope of recognition," said Gridiron Club Hockey Awards Committee chairman Tim Costello.

"This list reflects the high level of competition found across the region. Our committee believes that the level of play and increased number of teams merited expanding our list of candidates over those of prior years. All semifinalists are worthy. That definitely creates a challenge for the committee to pick the winner from the players nominated."

The Gridiron Club expects to announce the finalists and winner of the 16th Joe Concannon Award in March, prior to the start of NCAA Division III Frozen Four Tournament play. The award will be presented at the New England Hockey Writers dinner in April.

Joe Concannon Award Winners

The Joe Concannon Award
The Gridiron Club established the Joe Concannon Award in 2001 to honor Joe, a lifelong devotee of college hockey, former member of the Walter Brown Award Selection Committee and, as a journalist, a staunch advocate for the amateur athletes he knew and covered. A native of Litchfield, Connecticut, Joe graduated from Boston University in 1961. He served as sports information director (SID) at Holy Cross before joining the Boston Globe in the late 1960's to cover college sports. Joe declined frequent invitations by his editors to write about Boston's major professional sports teams, preferring to concentrate on the colleges, distance running and golf. He wrote the book Marathoning with Bill Rodgers and established the highly successful Litchfield Road Race in his hometown. Joe was a world traveler and was especially proud of his Irish heritage, frequently sojourning to the Emerald Isle. He passed away in 2000.

Portions of this release courtesy of the Gridiron Club of Boston and Salem State Sports Information