(Aliso Viejo, CA) The Great Southwest Athletic Conference announced its men’s and women’s soccer all-conference team Sunday afternoon, along with several individual season awards presented by Under Armour.
Park University Gilbert’s Olli Saksinen won the GSAC Freshman of the Year award and Brody Donovan won GSAC Newcomer of the Year award, as four Buccaneer soccer players were named to the GSAC men’s and women’s all-conference teams: Forward Olli Saksinen, midfielder Anton Aaltonen, goalkeeper Nicklas Lagesen, and defender Bekah Sipinga.
After successful regular seasons that led to double-digit wins and top-four seeds in the GSAC Championships, Park-Gilbert claims multiple of the conference’s major individual awards in men’s soccer for the first time in program history. Despite joining the GSAC just two years ago, Park-Gilbert also became the first school in the GSAC to have multiple men’s soccer Freshman of the Year winners since the award was reinstituted in 2020. Park-Gilbert now has three GSAC Freshman of the Year winners across all sports and seasons.
Saksinen becomes the second Buccaneer men’s soccer player to earn GSAC Freshman of the Year honors, joining Noah Yalu who won the award in 2024; Park’s first year in the conference. The Espoo, Finland native had an impressive 14-goal, three-game winner, and five-assist campaign to start his collegiate career. He scored the third most goals a Park player has ever logged in a season, leading the Buccaneers to a third-place regular season finish. Saksinen’s highlight of the 2026 season was scoring four goals in the Bucs’ 5-1 win at OUAZ on Sept. 16. Olli was also named to the GSAC All-Conference team as one of the seven forwards.
Donovan takes home the Newcomer of the Year award, becoming the first student-athlete in school history to receive the honor. The Gilbert native scored 11 goals and had a team-high five game winners this season, while also adding five assists on the year.
Aaltonen and Lagsen were the other two Buccaneers named to the GSAC men’s soccer all-conference team for the first time in their careers. Lagesen spent four seasons with Park-Gilbert, posting 86 saves, two clean sheets, and a 1.70 goals allowed average in 2026. Aaltonen transferred to Park this season and made immediate impacts in the midfield, co-leading the Bucs in assists this season with seven while adding four goals on the year.
On the women’s side, junior Bekah Sipinga one of the six defensive spots on the women’s all-conference team. Sipinga started in all 18 games this season, logging five goals and two assists while headlining a defense that’s allowed the fifth-least goals in the GSAC. Bekah joins former teammates Lauren Runnion and Alicia Ypina as the three Park women’s soccer players to receive all-conference honors over the past three seasons.
These five student-athletes are key reason for Park-Gilbert’s first GSAC postseason berths in men’s and women’s soccer, as the Buccaneers will host the first round for both sports this week. MSOC will open the week with a match against the sixth-seeded Soka Lions this Monday, Nov. 2 at 6 p.m. MST. WSOC will follow up with first-round action as they host the fifth-seeded OUAZ Spirit this Tuesday, Nov. 3 at 6 p.m. MST. Both games will be played on Field 14 at Arizona Athletic Grounds in Mesa, Arizona.
Press Release courtesy of Park University Athletics – Garrett Campbell
