Greenville, S.C. – Furman forward Wilfer Bustamante garnered Southern Conference Men's Soccer Player of the Year honors, and seven Paladins earned All-SoCon accolades in voting by the league's seven head coaches, it was revealed on Wednesday.
 
Midfielders Luke Hutzell and Diego Hernandez, along with defender Braden Dunham, joined Bustamante in earning first team All-SoCon honors while Ryan Wagner, Connor Stout, and Aaron Salinas were selected to the second team.
 
Bustamante netted a league leading 11 goals and added four assists during the regular season despite starting just seven of the Paladins' 16 matches. The Greenville, S.C., native and J.L. Mann High School graduate has scored nine goals in the last six matches, including netting hat tricks in back-to-back games against Virginia Tech and USC Upstate. Bustamante has captured two of the last three SoCon Offensive Player of the Week citations and has been named to the Top Drawer Soccer Team of the Week twice over the last three weeks. He has registered at least one point in five of the Paladins' last six outings.
 
Hutzell, a steadying force in the Paladin midfield, started all 16 matches during the regular season while adding four assists. The junior from Dacula, Ga., garnered All-SoCon honors for the third consecutive season and first team accolades for the second straight year.
 
Hernandez, a 2025 first team United Soccer Coaches All-American choice and the reigning SoCon Player of the Year, picked up first team all-league honors for the second straight season. The Mesquite, Texas, product has found the back of the net five times in 2026 and added one assist. Earlier this season, Hernandez was selected to the MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List.
 
Dunham, also a MAC Hermann Trophy Watch List selection, was named first team All-SoCon for the second consecutive season after also receiving conference freshman of the year honors and United Soccer All-Region laurels in 2025. The United States U-19 National Team centerback has scored three goals and added five assists in 16 starts this season while also anchoring Furman's back line.
 
Joining Dunham on the back line for the Paladins is second team All-SoCon choice Ryan Wagner. The Leawood, Kan., native captured second team accolades for the second straight year after making 14 starts on the back line as a junior this season. Wagner netted his lone goal, a match-winning score, in the Paladins' victory at ACC foe Duke. He also added two assists during the regular season.
 
After being named one of the top 25 freshman in the nation last season by Top Drawer Soccer and receiving SoCon All-Freshman honors, Stout repeated as an All-SoCon Second Team choice this season. The sophomore from Fairfax, Va., logged five assists in 14 matches, including a pair of helpers in victories over home state foes Virginia Tech and VMI.
 
Salinas, the 2024 SoCon Goalkeeper of the Year, bounced back after missing the 2025 campaign due to injury by taking second team honors. A senior from Grand Prairie, Texas, Salinas posted a 5-3-5 record, four clean sheets and a 1.28 goals against average as a junior this season.
 
Furman, 7-3-6 on the season, captured the school's 23^rd SoCon regular season championship and the No. 1 seed in the SoCon Men's Soccer Championship with a 4-1 victory over instate rival Wofford on Saturday night. The Paladins earned a bye to the SoCon semifinal round and will host the winner of Thursday's ETSU-Liberty match on Sunday at 7 p.m. on Seagraves Field at Stone Soccer Stadium. Tickets for Sunday's match can be purchased online by clicking here.
 
 
2026 SoCon Men's Soccer Postseason Awards
 
2026 Coach of the Year
Ryan Osborne, Wofford
 
2026 Player of the Year
Wilfer Bustamante, Furman
 
2026 Newcomer of the Year
Keaviano Francis, UNC Greensboro
 
2026 Goalkeeper of the Year
Seth Wilson, UNC Greensboro
 
2026 All-SoCon First Team
 
Forwards
Wilfer Bustamante, Furman
Jaime Carrillo, ETSU
Gavin Dick, ETSU
Samson Kpardeh, Liberty
 
Midfielders
Luke Hutzell, Furman
Diego Hernandez, Furman
Keaviano Francis, UNC Greensboro
Javan Ochieng, Liberty
 
Defenders
Braden Dunham, Furman
Scott Cheevers, Wofford
Trym Linberg, UNC Greensboro
 
Goalkeeper
Seth Wilson, UNC Greensboro
 
2026 All-SoCon Second Team
 
Forwards
Ronnie Gorman, Liberty
Lasse Dahl, UNC Greensboro
Pablo Torre, UNC Greensboro
 
Midfielders
Tiago Campos, UNC Greensboro
Fabian Menendez, Wofford
Elliott Edwards, ETSU
 
Defenders
Ryan Wagner, Furman
Connor Stout, Furman
Mathis Robinand, UNC Greensboro
Adam Celik, Wofford
 
Goalkeeper
Aaron Salinas, Furman
Pepe Hinterschuster, Wofford
 
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