July 10, 2006

St. Louis - Atlantic 10 Conference men's soccer coaches have tabbed five Saint Louis Billikens for 2006 preseason All-Conference honors. SLU midfielder John DiRaimondo (St. Louis, Mo. / Edison Academic Center, Bradenton, Fla.) and sophomore forward Dado Hamzagic (St. Louis, Mo. / Mehlville) are preseason All-Conference. Billiken freshmen Jimmy Holmes (St. Louis, Mo. / Priory), Tim Ream (St. Louis, Mo. / St. Dominic) and Rob Viviano (Orange, Calif. / Orange Lutheran) were selected for the All-Rookie Team.

"It is always an honor to be recognized prior to the season, but it usually holds true that the postseason All-Conference team is much different as players all over the league emerge," Billikens head coach Dan Donigan said. "John DiRaimondo is certainly a known quantity and a legitimate Hermann Trophy candidate, and we believe that we have a number of talented individuals who are about to blossom. We are looking forward to this season with great anticipation."

DiRaimondo (9G, 10A) collected a career-high 28 points in 2005 and was the A-10 Offensive Player of the Year. He was selected first-team NSCAA All-Midwest Region and was on the Hermann Trophy Watch List. With 15 points (4G, 7A), Hamzagic was the Bills' third-leading scorer in 2005 and landed on the A-10 All-Rookie Team.

Holmes totaled 94 points (43G, 8A) during his senior season at Priory High School and earned National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) All-America and All-Midwest Region honors. He was the Missouri Class 2 Player of the Year and the St. Louis Post-Dispatch's Metro Player of the Year. A midfielder, Ream was a 2005 NSCAA All-Midwest Region selection after finishing his career with 15 goals and a school-record 39 assists at St. Dominic High School. He was tabbed All-State, All-Conference and Missouri Class 2 defensive Player of the Year in both 2004 and 2005. A three-year starter and two-time All-Empire League selection at Orange Lutheran High School, Viviano totaled 51 points (20G, 11A) during his senior season.

Saint Louis (9-5-5 overall, 6-2-1 A-10 in 2005) won the A-10 regular-season title in its inaugural league season. The Billikens begin their season with an exhibition game against South Florida with a 7 p.m. kick-off at Robert R. Hermann Stadium on Sat., Aug. 19.

2006 Atlantic 10 Preseason All-Conference Teams
All-Conference Team
Jeffrey Gonsalves, F, Sr. Rhode Island
Dado Hamzagic, F, So., Saint Louis
Lukasz Tumicz, F, Jr., Rhode Island
Dawid Badecki, MF, Jr., Rhode Island
John DiRaimondo, MF, Sr., Saint Louis
Travis Mackenzie, MF, Jr., Duquesne
Jeremy Ortiz, MF, Jr., La Salle
Callum Bissett, B, Jr., Rhode Island
Kenny Cook, B, Jr., Massachusetts
Noah Salsi, B, Sr., Duquesne
Zach Varga, G, Sr., Duquesne
All-Rookie Team
Mike Briscoe, MF/B, George Washington
Anthony Cicchini, F, Temple
Randy Dennis, B, Dayton
Andrew Hanycz, F/MF, Xavier
Jimmy Holmes, F, Saint Louis
Ben Murray, MF, Dayton
Jeff Popella, F, Dayton
Tim Ream, MF, Saint Louis
Andrew Stadler, F, George Washington
Slovica Ubiparipovic, F, Xavier
Rob Viviano, MF, Saint Louis