For a Penn State freshman, there are plenty of causes for worry. Finding the classrooms, balancing new work and adjusting to a new school are all obstacles that most freshmen face.

Freshmen Richard Constanzo and Conrad Taylor have a different set of worries: where to put the awards they've garnered this year while playing on the men's soccer team.

Constanzo and Taylor were two of 11 players selected to Soccer America's Freshman All-America team, making Penn State the only school with two players on the team. Constanzo was one of four midfielders selected, and Taylor the only goalie.

To most players, an award like this would mean serious bragging rights, but both players downplayed the accomplishment.

"The awards give you something to shoot for," Constanzo said. "I don't look into it too much though. It's just a title. As a player, you still need to keep performing."

Taylor agreed and said that the awards just confirmed the work and dedication both players put into last season.

"Winning awards is confirmation that you're doing the right things," Taylor said. "It's good to know people recognize all your hard work."

It's very easy to recognize that Taylor did all the right things last season. The freshman played every minute of every game and only lost four of 22 games.

In that span, he recorded eight shutouts and had a 459-minute, 11-second streak during which he didn't allow a goal.

And though the Nittany Lions play in the Big Ten, which was rated the top conference in the nation last season, Taylor said the competition only helped the men's soccer team.

"A lot more teams will be shooting for us," Taylor said. "That will just make us play that much better."

Constanzo also had a phenomenal year, playing at midfield. Fighting through nagging injuries all season, he finished the season with 15 total points (four goals, seven assists) and was named Big Ten Freshman of the Year.

The Freshman All-America honor is the fifth award for both players this year. Along with his Big Ten Freshman of the Year award, Constanzo made the Big Ten All-Freshman team, the CollegeSoccerNews.com Freshman All-America second team, and the TopDrawerSoccer.com All-Freshman second team.

For his part, Taylor won Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week five times, and garnered spots on the Big Ten All-Freshman team, the CollegeSoccerNews.
com Freshman All-America first team, and the TopDrawerSoccer.com All-Freshman first team.

Constanzo pointed out that, despite such a successful year individually, he will continue to work toward next season.

"I have to make sure I work extra hard this offseason," Constanzo said. "I don't want to be categorized as that good player that fell into a slump the next season."

Taylor echoed his teammate and said that avoiding the sophomore slump would involve a lot of hard work.

"I'm just going to try not to put too much pressure on myself," he said. "I never set goals to get awards, I just let them come. As long as I keep working hard and stay focused, I'll be all right."

And Penn State assistant coach Marlon LeBlanc said the coaching staff doesn't expect a letdown next season either.

"We expect Rich and Conrad to continue to get better," he said. "If this past season is any indication of what these guys can do, then the sky is the limit as they say."

Of all the good that came out of last season, there is still one game about which none of the players and coaches can forget. It was their early exit at the hands of Tulsa, a game the Golden Hurricane won on penalty kicks thanks to the two saves by freshman goalie Dominic Cervi. Though Penn State lost the game, Taylor said that Cervi didn't outplay him.

"He made mistakes that were obvious, but he just got lucky that we couldn't capitalize on them," Taylor said. "He definitely didn't outplay me."

The coaching staff hopes that Constanzo and Taylor can be the building blocks for the team next season, and that the Lions can avoid another early exit. The duo's production will be imperative for the Lions to go deep into the NCAA tournament.

And LeBlanc said that both players are up for the challenge.

"These two guys have a bright future as Nittany Lions," he said. "They are committed to the cause and want nothing more than to win a national championship. These are the types of guys that we will build our program around."