PAC Release

TRAFFORD, Pa. -- Brady Napoleon's (Pittsburgh, Pa./Mt. Lebanon) record-breaking season was recognized by the Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) on Tuesday, as the conference announced the standout senior was voted the 2024 PAC Offensive Player of the Year.

In addition to his Offensive Player of the Year award, Napoleon was one of three All-PAC selections for the Gators. He was joined on the All-PAC First Team by midfielder Will Gruca (Baden, Pa./Ambridge), while center back Aidan Dyga (Wexford, Pa./North Allegheny) was named an All-PAC Honorable Mention.

Napoleon did a little bit of everything in 2024. He began his senior year as a starter on defense, but his move to the top of the formation rejuvenated Allegheny's season. Despite missing two games and playing defense for a significant portion of the fall, Allegheny's talisman broke a 47-year-old program record for the most goals in a season by a Gator with 18. He surpassed Hall of Famer David Nelson '79, who scored 17 during the team's undefeated season 1977 campaign. Among national leaders, Napoleon ranks eighth in goals, 11th in goals per game (0.95), 16th in points (38), and 17th in points per game (2.00). His 38 points were just two shy of the team single-season record, and the Pittsburgh native will graduate in a tie for third all-time with 38 career goals.

Napoleon, a three-time All-PAC First Teamer, is the first Gator to win Offensive Player of the Year honors since Ben Montgomery was named the North Coast Athletic Conference (NCAC) Co-Offensive Player of the Year in the fall of 2003. He's only the second Allegheny men's soccer student-athlete to win Player of the Year honors from the PAC, as Nelson earned the award in 1978 before the Gators switched conference affiliation.

An All-PAC Honorable Mention as a freshman, Gruca was promoted to the All-PAC First Team after a strong sophomore season. One of only two Gators to start all 21 games, Gruca controlled the game from the midfield. He was second on the team in goals (6) and paced all Allegheny players with six assists. The second-year midfielder had a season-high three points in a non-conference draw against SUNY Geneseo (1g-1a) and a 4-0 win over Saint Vincent College in the regular-season finale (3a). He earned points in six of his last eight games and scored goals in both PAC tournament matches.

The other Gator to start all 21 games this season was Dyga, who received the first All-PAC designation of his career. The 6-foot-2 defenseman played more than 1,700 minutes on the back line, and his presence helped Allegheny finish with a sub-two goals-against average for the first time since 2019. Dyga played a significant role in the team's four shutouts, which included a 5-0 clean sheet victory in the PAC Championship Tournament quarterfinals against Chatham University.

In addition to the trio of All-PAC selections, Graham Kralic (Beaver Falls, Pa./Riverside) was chosen as Allegheny's representative on the PAC Sportsmanship Team for the second year in a row. The PAC Sportsmanship Teams were established to recognize student-athletes who have distinguished themselves through demonstrated acts of sportsmanship and ethical behavior, and are an ongoing effort to recognize and encourage positive sportsmanship among all PAC teams and student-athletes. Despite missing several games in the middle of the season with an injury, the senior defender returned to the starting lineup to help the Gators make their run to the PAC tournament.