Friday, December 2, 2022

PORTLAND, Ore. – After strong seasons for their respective programs, Simon Fraser junior defender Mark Talisuna and Seattle Pacific senior goalkeeper Lars Helleren represent the GNAC as 2022 United Soccer Coaches All-America Team selections.

Talisuna adds second team All-America honors to his list of 2022 accolades that includes GNAC Player of the Year, First Team All-GNAC, First Team D2CCA All-West, and United Soccer Coaches All-West Region first team honors.

Talisuna proved himself to be a key piece of the Red Leafs’ runner-up run in the conference standings, playing over 1,500 minutes on the back line.

He was the player that SFU turned to whenever the team took a penalty kick and went a perfect three-for-three from the spot for his three goals of the season. With Talisuna on the back line, the Red Leafs finished the 2022 campaign with an 11-5-1 overall record (8-3-1 GNAC). Simon Fraser’s 1.002 goals against average is second in the GNAC and ranks 38th in Division II.

Helleren was named Third Team All-America after posting eight shutouts to tie for the conference lead and rank 10th in Division II this season. His .682 save percentage also ranked fifth in the GNAC.

Another first team All-GNAC selection, Helleren was a steady presence in net for the Falcons, starting all 19 matches of the season while logging 1,656 minutes and making 45 saves.

Helleren’s efforts in net helped lead the SPU to a fourth place GNAC finish with a 6-3-3 conference record and a 7-6-6 overall mark. He finishes his career fifth in Seattle Pacific program history with 232 saves.