Biello is in the running for Most Valuable Player, Gervais is nominated for the Defender of the Year award, while De Santis is a finalist for Coach of the Year.
The MVP race includes Vancouver Whitecaps forward Jason Jordan and Rochester Raging Rhinos striker Kirk Wilson. Taylor Graham of the Seattle Sounders and Scot Thompson of the Portland Timbers are up, along with Gervais, for the defensive honour. Vancouver Whitecaps head coach Bob Lilley and the Minnesota Thunder’s Buzz Lagos will challenge De Santis for Coach of the Year.
The coaches and the general managers of the USL First Division voted on the nominees. The names of the winners will be announced at the league banquet during the USL First Division Championship weekend.
MOST VALUABLE PLAYER
> Forward and captain Mauro Biello finished the campaign as the Impact's leading scorer with 21 points, good enough for seventh place overall in the league. He tallied seven game-winning goals this season, breaking his old club record of six that he first set in 1997, and which was equaled by Eduardo Sebrango in 2002.
> Biello also added to his club record for most career goals in an Impact uniform. He now sits at 65 goals. He scored his 60th career goal in his 250th career game with the Impact, July 22, in a 1-0 victory over the Lynx in Toronto.
> Biello played in all 28 regular-season games this year, adding to his club-leading third complete season with the club.
> He became the first-ever player in club history to surpass the 20,000 minutes played mark in an Impact uniform on August 17th, in a 1-1 draw against the Puerto Rico Islanders.
> Biello was also selected to the All-League First Team in the USL. He established a league record with his sixth career selection to an all-league squad.
DEFENDER OF THE YEAR
> Gervais helped the Impact limit its opponents to only 15 goals in 28 games played over the regular season, which ties a club record.
> He also helped Montreal play through two stretches of four consecutive shutouts, and totaling 16 shutouts over the regular season.
> He was selected for the fourth consecutive year as a member of the USL D1 All-League First Team, becoming the 16th player in league history with four appearances.
> Gervais has won the Defender of the Year award for the last two seasons.
COACH OF THE YEAR
> In his second full season as head coach of the Montreal Impact, De Santis led the team to a record of 18-3-7 and to its fourth regular-season championship, after the titles earned in 1995, 1996 and 1997.
> At the start of the season, the Impact established a new record of the United Soccer Leagues First Division by going undefeated in 15 consecutive games (10-0-5). Montreal also went undefeated for nine straight games on the road (6-0-3), a new club record.
> The Impact established a new club record for fewest losses in a season, with three. The club’s previous record was six losses, recorded in 1996, 2003 and 2004. The Impact’s three losses also tied a “modern-day” (1997 to this day) USL record, first set by the Charleston Battery in 2002.
> The Impact broke the club record for fewest losses on the road with two. The previous mark was three games, set in 1998 and tied in 2003.
> The Impact lost only one home game this year, which ties a team record set back in 1996.
SEMI-FINAL BROADCAST ON RDS, CJAD AND CKAC
The Impact announced, Tuesday, that the two semi-final games against the Seattle Sounders will be broadcast on CJAD 800 and CKAC 730. The return leg of the series, in Montreal, will also be broadcast on RDS.
The two teams will square off on Friday at 10 pm, at Starfire Sports Complex in Seattle, and will then move on to Claude-Robillard Sports Complex on Sunday, 4 pm, for the second leg of the home-and-away, total-goal series.
Tickets for the semi-finals are available through the Impact offices at 514-328-3668 or via the Admission network at (514) 790-1245. Ticket prices are the same as during the regular season: $15 for reserved seating, $10 (adults) and $5 (children) for general admission.
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Source: Patrick Vallée
Info: 514-328-3668 (ext. 27)
