WASHINGTON – Georgetown University men's soccer senior Dylan Nealis was recognized as one of the three finalists for the Missouri Athletic Club's (MAC) Hermann Trophy at the annual awards reception on Friday evening in St. Louis. The trophy was awarded to the top male and female collegiate soccer players in the nation, which was determined by a vote of Division I coaches who are members of the United Soccer Coaches.
 
The MAC Hermann Trophy, presented by World Wide Technology, is the most coveted individual honor in NCAA Division I soccer and has been awarded annually since 1986. This year, the trophy was awarded to Catarina Macario from Stanford University and Robbie Robinson from Clemson University.
 
A two-year team captain, Nealis led the Hoyas to the program's first NCAA Championship in a thrilling 3-3 double overtime victory as GU prevailed 7-6 in penalty kicks.  After graduating from Georgetown in December with a degree in management from the McDonough School of Business, Nealis is the first senior in program history to pre-sign with Major League Soccer (MLS) in preparation for the MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 9.
 
Nealis was named both United Soccer Coaches First Team All-America and First Team All-East Region marking his first All-America honor.  The defender is the reigning two-time BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year and a two-time All-BIG EAST honoree.  He was selected to the BIG EAST All-Tournament team this season and earned BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Week honors three times in 2019.  Nealis started all 24 games for the Blue & Gray and ranked fifth on the team in scoring with four goals and five assists for 13 points on the year.  The GU defense had 13 shutouts for the season.
 
Along with Georgetown's third NCAA national championship in school history, the Hoyas set a new program record for wins in a season finishing the year with a mark of 20-1-3 and finished the season on a 17-game unbeaten streak dating back to September 24 at Louisville.  The squad also won the BIG EAST Regular Season as well as the BIG EAST Championship for the third-consecutive year.
 
In his career, Nealis started in 76 of 78 games played and had seven goals and 14 assists for 28 points.  The team earned three NCAA Tournament berths advancing to the Round of 16 twice, the quarterfinals once and capping off his career with the championship.
 
Nealis is one of just two Hermann Trophy finalists from Georgetown joining Brandon Allen (C'15) on the impressive list.
 
For more information about the MAC Hermann Trophy, including a list of past winners, visit MACHermannTrophy.org.