“Recognition by your peers is always special,” said FLC Director of Athletics Gary Hunter. “The amount of success that Oige has had in such a short period of time as a head coach is just extraordinary.”

In his three years at the helm of the Skyhawk men’s soccer program, Kenney has guided his squad to a pair of NCAA Division II national titles in 2009 and 2011.

Through his first three seasons, Kennedy has posted a 59-7-4 (.847) overall record and is 37-3-2 (.929) in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games. His teams are a perfect 10-0-0 in the NCAA playoffs and 4-0-2 in the RMAC tournament (two ties ending in penalty kicks).

His 2009 and 2011 teams each went 24-1-0, setting the NCAA Division II standard for most wins in a season.

Earlier this season, Kennedy was named the NSCAA/MONDO Central Region Coach of the Year and the RMAC Coach of the Year. He was previously named the CaptainU Division II Coach of the Year in 2009.

He wasn’t the lone Skyhawk to be honored. Senior defender Fabian Kling received the NSCAA/Continental Tire NCAA Division II Player of the Year honor at the awards banquet. Kling’s honor was announced last month by the NSCAA.

In addition to Kennedy winning the Division II award, former Fort Lewis College men’s soccer skipper Jeremy Gunn (1999-2007) was named the NSCAA/MONDO National Coach of the Year for NCAA Division I. Gunn led North Carolina-Charlotte to their first championship game appearance in school history, falling to North Carolina 1-0 in the title match. His team finished with a 16-5-4 record, boosting his career mark to 64-26-15 at the Division I level in five seasons at Charlotte and 187-61-31 in 13 seasons as a collegiate head coach. Gunn, who left Charlotte for Stanford last month, also won the 2005 NSCAA National Coach of the Year award at the Division II level after leading Fort Lewis to the 2005 national title.

Kennedy and Gunn are the only two Fort Lewis College coaches in any sport to win National Coach of the Year awards while coaching at FLC.

“Sameth is a player that we are extremely excited to add to our roster for the upcoming spring,” said Kennedy, who guided the Skyhawks to their third NCAA Division II title since 2005 last month. “We fell he will bring energy to the team and will be hungry for success, which is the cutting edge we will need from all our players. He has a tremendous soccer resume and we are excited to see him on the field with the rest of our returning guys.”

Al-Basith transferred to Fort Lewis from East Tennessee State University, where he attended classes last semester but did not play soccer. The 5-foot-8, 150-lb. central midfielder has four years of collegiate eligibility remaining.

He played club soccer in England for Cardiff City FC and West Ham United FC.

Al-Basith plans on majoring in Business Administration at Fort Lewis.

Kennedy is expected to announce more recruits on or after Feb. 1, 2012, which is the National Letter of Intent day for soccer. Because Al-Basith has already started taking classes at Fort Lewis, FLC was able to announce his transfer once the current semester had begun.

The Skyhawks captured their third NCAA Division II championship in 2011, having previously won national titles in 2005 and 2009. FLC was national runners-up in 1999 and 2006. Fort Lewis posted a 24-1-0 overall record, 13-1-0 in Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference games. The Skyhawks also won NCAA-II Central Region, RMAC regular season, and RMAC tournament titles.

Berekk Blackwell delivered a header off a Joey Madigan corner kick that gave Fort Lewis a 3-2 victory over Lynn about 90 seconds into the first overtime of the NCAA Division II men’s soccer championship in Pensacola, Fla.

“I thought we knew it was going to be a tough game,” coach Oige Kennedy said. “It was all pretty even, and to go behind and come back and put yourself in the lead, then fall back again, to come out and win it in the end is tremendous.”

This was the second title Kennedy has coached the Skyhawks (24-1-0) to, as he guided the 2009 champions, who also finished 24-1-0.

Lynn, from Boca Raton, Fla., scored first in the 14th minute on a 25-yard free kick by Harald Gracholski. Fort Lewis equalized in the 25th minute when Lynn defender Jason Sangha headed a free kick from Skyhawk Alberto Capdepon-Rodriguez into his own goal.

In the 32nd minute, Kosta Kordistos put the Skyhawks ahead with a left-footed shot from 12 yards out off a pass from Cory Dean.

Fort Lewis held the lead until the 72nd minute, when Gracholski curled in another free kick for Lynn, this time from 30 yards out.

Although Lynn outshot the Skyhawks 12-3, the Florida team could only watch as Blackwell scored the game winner.

“I was upset over the goal and it was the first corner kick we’ve let in all year,” said Lynn coach John Rootes. “We fought hard, but we just lost our concentration in the overtime. I thought we deserved a better outcome, but you just have to hand it to Fort Lewis.”

Fort Lewis can now add a third star over its crest, symbolizing its NCAA Division II championships in 2005, 2009 and 2011. The Skyhawks were also NCAA-II runners-up in 1999 and 2006.

The Skyhawks scored first when Artur Piperkov connected for his first goal of the season 10 minutes into the match. Piperkov banged his shot in from 15 yards out.

Alex Nass brought the Orediggers even in the 31st minute when he fired in on a free kick from 35 yards out. The two sides went to the half tied.

It remained that way into the 65th minute when Joey Madigan’s corner found the head of Johannes Sander, who put the ball past Manville Strand.

The Skyhawks struck again in the 76th minute on a give-and-go in the box between Thomas Hoang and Corey Dean, with Hoang finishing for Fort Lewis.

The visitors from Durango weren’t done. Jordan Alexander delivered the goal of the day in the 87th minute. With his back to the goal, Alexander fired a side-foot volley from 15 yards out into the back of the net for the final margin.

“It’s something that we’ve been threatening to do all year, to start that way,” coach Oige Kennedy said. “It really puts the onus on our opponents when we do that.”

With traffic in front of Adams State goalkeeper Michael Miller, Joey Madigan’s corner kick curled safely into the net just 4:36 into the game to start the onslaught. Thirty-four seconds later, Derek Freeman headed a cross from Alberto Capdepon-Rodriguez to stretch the lead to 2-0. Twenty-two ticks ran off the clock before Madigan blasted a shot from the left side past Miller to make the score 3-0.

“He’s playing like a senior and leading by example,” Kennedy said. “His ability on the ball is really exciting to watch.”

Thomas Hoang assisted on Madigan’s second goal — and fourth of the season — to move into FLC’s Top 10 career scoring leaders. Hoang’s assist — his team-leading seventh of the season — gives him 55 total points during his four-year career, the same as Brent Diaz (1998-2001).

With three goals in 56 seconds, FLC shattered the nine-year-old Division II standard for fastest three consecutive goals by one team. California State-Bakersfield previously set the mark with three scores in 1:16 against California State-Dominguez Hills in 2002.

The onslaught wasn’t over, though. Freeman notched his second goal of the game at 16:19 when he tapped in a crossing pass from Artur Piperkov to stretch the lead to 4-0.

The Grizzlies got their only goal of the game at 34:20 when Andrew Hinkle headed a second ball won by Peter Freeman past FLC goalkeeper Ryan Wirth after a corner kick. The goal was just the second allowed this season by the Skyhawks.

Casey Dean got the Skyhawks back on track when he scored for the first time this season on a successful penalty kick that beat Miller to the left side at 62:52. Dean drew the penalty when he was taken down on the edge of the box on the right side on a scoring rush.

Jordan Alexander netted his third goal of 2011 at 67:53 after Freeman slotted a pass from the right side to him.

Next Up: Fort Lewis concludes its three-game homestand at 1 p.m. Sunday against UC-Colorado Springs.

“I knew it was obviously going to be a very tough game,” said FLC head coach Damian Clarke. “I thought we were just tough enough to win it.”

Striedel rose above the defense to greet Sara Egbom’s corner in the middle of the goal mouth, heading it safely past reserve CMU goalkeeper Sarah Schnetzler to the game-winner. The goal was Striedel’s fourth of the season and third in the past two games.

The Skyhawks took the lead early in the game on a similar corner. Egbom floated the kick in from the left corner, where the ball careened off of three players, including Striedel and Skyhawk forward Emma Cannis before ultimately slipping just inside the left post at 2:23. Cannis was credited with her third goal of the season.

The Mavericks tied the score in the tenth minute when Leilani Wiernicki curled a free kick from 30-plus yards out past the outstretched hands of FLC’s Amanda Raso and into the left side of the goal. Wiernicki’s bomb was her first marker of the year.

In between Wiernicki’s tally and Striedel’s heroics was a closely-contested contest. Colorado Mesa outshot the Skyhawks 14-9 — the first time FLC had been outshot all season. Fort Lewis did own a 5-4 advantage in shots on target.

“It’s a tough couple of day stretch for us,” said soccer coach Oige Kennedy of his Skyhawks’ run of four games in eight days. “We got off on the right foot. If we can keep our home record strong, then it’s going to be a good year for us.”

The Skyhawks jumped out in front 1-0 when Kling converted a penalty kick for the second game in a row at 17:17. Colorado Mesa goalkeeper Caleb Ealey dove hard left and Kling sent a low scorcher down the middle to beat him.

The penalty was awarded after Thomas Hoang was pulled down on a scoring chance in the box by a CMU defender.

Kling added some cushion at 38:26 when he curled a free kick past the Mavericks’ wall into the left side of the goal from 30-plus yards out. The goal was Kling’s third of the year, all of them coming in the past four days.

Hoang scored a pretty goal of his own at 62:12 when he trapped a crossing pass from Artur Piperkov in the box and drilled his shot into the back netting. Piperkov’s pass was nearly headed by Derek Freeman, but cleared his head and was collected by Hoang. The senior midfielder’s goal was his second of the 2011 campaign.

Ryan Wirth had another quiet day in goal, making just two saves while notching his fifth shutout in six games. His goals against average is a paltry 0.17 a third of the way through the 2011 schedule.

Ealey made one save for the Mavericks, as FLC outshot CMU 14-7 overall and 4-2 in shots on goal.

Next Up: Fort Lewis continues its three-game homestand at 1 p.m. Friday against Adams State and UC-Colorado Springs at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Forward Hayley Hollenga — FLC’s career leader in goals (36), assists (25), and total points (97) — had a goal and an assist on a day that saw her accept an award as the fan choice for best Skyhawk player ever at the school’s Athletic Hall of Fame induction ceremony and All-Century Team celebration.

The top 100 student-athletes, coaches, and administrators in school history were honored at the brunch and four individuals were inducted into the Athletic Hall of Fame.

Hollenga started the scoring just 10:53 into the game when she netted her fourth goal of the season after beating UNK goalkeeper Marissa Niday. Sara Egbom played a long ball through the Loper defense to assist on the play.

Striedel pushed the lead to 2-0 when she tapped in a crossing pass less than four minutes later. Hollenga found Cannis open on the left side and Cannis feathered a pass across the goal mouth at 14:43.

Seemingly in control of the game, Fort Lewis had a couple of defensive lapses during the next five minutes, allowing Nebraska-Kearney to strike twice in a two-minute span to level the score. Ashtin Pawloski got the Lopers on the board at 18:17 after Raliegh Mercer slid a pass to her on the right side. Mercer tied the game at 19:50 on a well-placed shot from near the top right side of the box. Talisha Krason assisted on the goal.

Cannis then took over by assisting on two goals in a 56-second span. She played a ball across the goal to Striedel at 23:24, then found Shea Haycock at 24:20 to extend the lead to a two-goal advantage.

Amanda Raso made a pair of saves while improving her record to 5-0-1 this season. Niday stopped nine shots for UNK.

Next Up: Fort Lewis wraps up its three-game homestand when it hosts Colorado Mesa (2-3-0, 1-0-0) at 1 p.m. Wednesday.

Midfielder Julia Thompson scored the first two goals of her career — one coming in the waning moments of each half — as the Skyhawks dominated possession and shots 21-5 and shots on frame 13-2.

Her first tally was set up off a pass by Taylor Tegtmeyer that Thompson dribbled down the east sideline, around a defender, and into the box where she easily beat CSUP netminder Savannah Thompson to extend the lead to 3-0 with 1:59 remaining in the first half. She notched her second marker when she launched a shot just inside the post with 1:07 left in the game. Fellow freshman Sam Weiss assisted on the second goal.

“This is the second game in a row that we’ve had a freshman score two goals,” said Damian Clarke, after watching Weiss net a pair in Monday’s 2-2 draw with Grand Canyon. “Sam had an assist in this game as well. Our young kids are making a difference.”

Fort Lewis took a 1-0 lead just 2:43 into the game when Jane Barden blasted a rebound into the open frame after Thompson had stuffed Megan Striedel’s shot from the right side. Senior All-American Hayley Hollenga passed from the center of the box to the outside to free Striedel.

Tegtmeyer netted her first goal of the season on an unassisted bullet from near the top of the box in the 39th minute. Striker Emma Cannis extended the 3-0 halftime lead to 4-0 just 1:14 into the second half on Hollenga’s second assist of the game.

Goalkeepers Amanda Raso (4-0-1 overall) and Amanda Snider combined for the shutout, with the latter seeing the first action of her collegiate career in 21:51 of relief. Each keeper stopped one shot. Thompson (3-2-0 overall) made eight saves for the ThunderWolves.

Next Up: Fort Lewis continues its three-game home stand when it hosts Nebraska-Kearney (2-3-0, 0-1-0) at 1 p.m. Sunday.

Freshman Kosta Kordistos started the scoring early, slipping a shot past CSM goalkeeper Manville Strand and inside the far post just 1:43 into the game.

“We tried to make sure we had a good, positive start,” said FLC head coach Oige Kennedy. “Last year we had such a bad start against Mines at home, we had something to prove.”

In 2010, Mines scored three times in the first 32 minutes on their way to an eventual 4-2 win at Dirks Field. The Orediggers were 2-0-1 against the Skyhawks in three meetings a year ago.

Fort Lewis dominated Colorado Mines throughout the first half, launching nine shots, including seven on target. Strand answered the call, making six saves during the frame.

The field tilted in the Orediggers’ favor in the second stanza, though, as the preseason Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference favorite peppered the FLC defense with 12 shots.

“In sports, you lose confidence a lot quicker than you gain it,” said Kennedy. “All credit to them. They’re a good, strong team ranked in the Top 10 in the nation — a place they deserve to be.”

Midfielder Aaron Kloer scored what proved to be the game-winner when he headed home a cross from Joey Madigan at 65:34.

The Orediggers were finally able to break through at 72:49, when Preseason Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Player of the Year Chike Sullivan buried a pass by Tesho Akindele. The score cut the Skyhawk lead in half and ended FLC goalkeeper Ryan Wirth’s shutout streak at 457:34 — one that extended to the 15:15 mark of the 2010 RMAC semifinals and stretched over parts of six games.

Wirth’s counterpart, Strand, made nine saves for the Orediggers.

Although the meeting between the two RMAC arch-rivals doesn’t count in the league standings, there was plenty of enmity on the field. Thirty fouls were whistled (19 against FLC) and four yellow cards were issued (three against the Skyhawks).