Bolanos, Crisler, Fitzgerald, and Terzaghi Named to USL League One All-League Teams
October 26, 2022 – United Soccer League One (USL1) – Richmond Kickers News Release
TAMPA, Fla. – – USL League One announced on Wednesday that Richmond Kickers’ forward Jonathan Bolanos, defender Jalen Crisler, and forward Emiliano Terzaghi were named to the league’s All-League First Team, and goalkeeper Akira Fitzgerald was named to the All-League Second Team.
The quartet rightfully earn places in the All-League teams after helping the Kickers to their first regular-season title since the 2013 season and returning the postseason to City Stadium for the first time since 2014. The club scored the most goals in league history with 54 while finishing tied for the second-highest points total with 51 on a nine-match unbeaten streak – the longest for the club in the USL League One era.
Terzaghi returns to the All-League First Team for the third straight season after leading the league and the Kickers with 17 goals – earning his third-straight Golden Boot. The Argentine talisman was a constant in the league’s in-season awards, amassing the August Player of the Month award alongside another monthly nomination in April as well as earning a Player of the Week nod during week 19 and Team of the Week honors during weeks 1, 2, 14, and 22.
Fitzgerald earns his second-straight placement in the All-League teams after earning a first-team placement in 2021. Richmond’s number 1 set multiple league records that included becoming the first goalkeeper to make 100 or more saves in a season, finishing with 105, while becoming the first player in league history to make 100 league appearances. Fitzgerald headed up a defensive unit that conceded the second-fewest goals (35) and earned seven total clean sheets while Fitzgerald was officially credited with six.
Bolanos earns his first placement in the league’s annual honors after a historic campaign that saw the third-year pro set the new league record with 11 assists, tying the league record of three assists in a single match while finishing tied for second in scoring on the team with six goals. The newly-minted Assists Champion was a fixture during the league’s in-season honors that included September Player of the Month and another nomination for POTM in June. Bolanos earned seven total placements in the weekly honors including Player of the Week honors during weeks 11 and 22.
Crisler earns his first placement in the league’s annual honors after a second-straight season of being the anchor in the Richmond backline. He finished the regular season with 2,505 minutes played which ranked the most of any outfield player on the team. A specialist in nullifying opposing attacks, Crisler finished the season with 154 clearances and a 64 percent aerials duals won rate. Along with his towering defensive record, Crisler added his first two goals with the club to his statistical output.
#1 Richmond is set to host #4 Chattanooga Red Wolves SC in the USL League One Semifinals, presented by Hisense, on October 29. Kickoff time for the semifinal match is set for 6 pm.
During the semifinal match, the Kickers will host a Blackout City Stadium night, presented by The Lemus Group and United Real Estate Richmond. The first 1,000 fans at the match will receive a Black Out T-Shirt. Playoff tickets are available for purchase at richmondkickers.com/tickets.
Stay up to date with the latest news from the Kickers at RichmondKickers.com and on the official team app.
2022 USL League One All-League First Team
GK – Rashid Nuhu, Union Omaha: The back-to-back Golden Glove winner and two-time All-League Second Team selection broke into the First Team for the first time in his three-year Omaha career. The Ghanaian led the league with a 0.98 goals-against average and helped Omaha to the fewest goals conceded during the season (33).
D – Jalen Crisler, Richmond Kickers: Crisler earns his first All-League honor in his third season in League One and second in Richmond. The 28-year-old defender finished second in league history with his 154 clearances in a single season and led the Kickers in duels won with 138, blocks with 25 and possessions won in the defensive third with 106.
D – Evan Lee, Greenville Triumph SC: League One’s all-time minutes leader for outfield players, Lee earns his first All-League honor having recorded a team-high 17 blocked shots and 111 possessions won in the defensive third to go along with a first professional goal and an assist.
D – Daniel Navarro, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC: Despite missing half of the regular season, Navarro helped Chattanooga to a strong second half of the campaign which saw the Red Wolves pick up 1.66 points per match and register a +10-goal differential in matches that Navarro played in compared to just 1.13 points per match and a +4-goal differential when the defender was absent.
D – Arthur Rogers, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: Rogers set a new single-season league record with 80 chances created in an incredibly productive first season in Windsor. The 26-year-old Englishman’s nine assists were the second-most on the season and most by a defender in a single season in league history.
M – Jonathan Bolanos, Richmond Kickers: Despite sitting out a third of the season due to injury, Bolanos set the single-season league record for assists with 11 to help the Richmond Kickers to their best regular-season finish since 2013. Bolanos also posted an individual single-season high with six goals.
M – José Carrera-García, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC: In addition to a pair of goals and seven assists, the Red Wolves’ captain led the league in tackles won with 36 and was tied for second with 55 chances created.
M – Omar Ciss, Charlotte Independence: The 21-year-old Senegalese midfielder enjoyed a breakout campaign after a pair of seasons in the USL Championship to begin his professional career. Ciss tallied three goals, one of which was a game-winner, and two assists to go along with a team-high 33 tackles won and 140 duels won.
M – JP Scearce, Union Omaha: Leading Omaha’s young core, the third-year Owl won – by far – the most duels in the league this season with 225 and was the second-highest scorer on the team with a career-best seven goals to nearly double his career goal total. Scearce’s two braces this season also serve as the most in club history.
F – Garrett McLaughlin, North Carolina FC: Nearly doubling his career goal total from two previous professional seasons, McLaughlin finished second in the Golden Boot race with 14 goals for NCFC. McLaughlin’s 14 tallies were the most for NCFC since Daniel Rios scored 20 goals for the club in the 2018 USL Championship season.
F – Emiliano Terzaghi, Richmond Kickers: Claiming his third consecutive Golden Boot in his third season in the league, Terzaghi became the first player in league history to score 10-plus goals in three or more seasons. The Argentine’s 17 goals were the second-most scored in a single season behind Terzaghi’s own record of 18 set a season ago.
2022 USL League One All-League Second Team
GK – Akira Fitzgerald, Richmond Kickers: The reigning Goalkeeper of the Year and 2021 All-League First Team selection faced the most shots and most shots on target in a single season in league history. In response, Fitzgerald recorded the most saves in a single season in league history with 105 with a save percentage of 75 percent.
D – Jake Dengler, South Georgia Tormenta FC: Tormenta FC’s towering defender locked down the South Georgia backline in his first season in Statesboro. Dengler found the back of the net for the first time in his professional career and finished fifth in the league with 24 blocked shots.
D – Brandon Fricke, Greenville Triumph SC: Fricke earned his fourth All-League honor – the most in league history – following another stellar campaign with Greenville. Fricke helped Greenville to a league-best 10 clean sheets with his team-high 89 clearances. Fricke’s lone goal on the season also positions him as just the fourth player and only defender in league history to score in four separate seasons.
D – Mikey Maldonado, Forward Madison FC: After his debut professional season with North Texas SC in 2021, Maldonado joined the ‘Mingos in the offseason and went on to record his first professional goals and assists – two and four, respectively. Maldonado also created a team-high 45 chances in Madison.
D – Timmy Mehl, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC: Joining the Red Wolves on loan from the Tampa Bay Rowdies in June, Mehl hit the ground running and proved to be a welcome addition to the Chattanooga backline. The USL Championship loanee scored twice and won nearly 80 percent of his tackles.
M – Gabriel Cabral, South Georgia Tormenta FC: Signing with Tormenta FC’s First Team after a successful stint with South Georgia Tormenta FC 2 in USL League Two a season ago, Cabral suited up for every competitive Tormenta FC match this season and eventually donned the captain’s armband to end the regular season. The 25-year-old Brazilian recorded a trio of goals and a trio of assists along with 47 chances created.
M – Moe Espinoza, Chattanooga Red Wolves SC: The former United States youth international exploded for eight goals and seven assists in his first season in Chattanooga, tripling his combined career goals and assists total entering the season. The 23-year-old winger scored a collection of high-quality goals to go along with his 80 percent passing accuracy rate.
M – Gabriel Obertan, Charlotte Independence: After spending the second half of the 2021 USL Championship season with the Jacks, the veteran Frenchman rejoined the Independence midway through the 2022 campaign and made his presence known with three goals, three assists and 21 chances created.
M – Louis Perez, FC Tucson: After a professional debut season with Pittsburgh Riverhounds SC in the USL Championship in 2021, Perez proved incredibly productive in his first season in League One. Perez was tied for the team lead in goals with five and led his side with seven assists – more than quadrupling his combined career goals and assists total entering the season. The Frenchman’s 55 chances created were tied for the second most on the season.
F – Irvin Parra, Northern Colorado Hailstorm FC: Parra scored 12 goals in his first season with the Hailstorm to record his third season in either the USL Championship or USL League One with 10 or more goals.
F – Kazaiah Sterling, South Georgia Tormenta FC: Tormenta FC’s young star has enjoyed a career renaissance in Statesboro with a club-record 13 goals in just 23 appearances. The former Tottenham Hotspur FC forward provided an attacking spark to help South Georgia to its first playoff appearance in the professional ranks.
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