York University Lions men's soccer midfielder Christian Zeppieri wasn't satisfied with just one OUA West MVP award.
He wanted two.
And two he got.
Zeppieri was named the OUA West MVP in 2023 after scoring four goals during the regular season. All Zeppieri did in 2024 was more than double that output, posting nine goals, while also showing his playmaking abilities by leading the conference in assists with eight. He also finished the season tied for the league lead in points with 17.
That was the recipe for a second consecutive West MVP for the Maple, Ont., native, as well as another first team all-star nod. Zeppieri is York's 11th OUA West MVP winner, and the fourth consecutive Lion to win the award joining himself (2023), Soji Olatoye (2022) and Dieu Merci Yuma (2021). The accounting major becomes the first Lion since Francesco Bruno in 2008 and 2009 to win the award in back-to-back campaigns, and, additionally, is only the fourth York player to win the award on more than one occasion, joining Bruno, Adrian Pena (2010, 2012) and Jonathan Lao (2013, 2016).
In addition to Zeppieri's accolades, midfielder Luca Accettola received the OUA West Rookie of the Year award. The kinesiology & health science major made his mark early on in his OUA career, scoring in his first game as a Lion, providing some insurance in a 2-0 York win over McMaster on Aug. 30. He finished the season with six goals, third-best on the Lions. Accettola becomes the 12th Lion to be named OUA West Rookie of the Year, and the first since Cristian Cavallini. He will try to become the third Lion to win both Rookie of the Year and MVP over his time in red and white, the others being Lao and Cavallini.
On top of Zeppieri and Accettola, the Lions had a pair of first team all-stars – Kelvin Ramirez and Yigal Bruk – as well as two second teamers – Alessio Carbone and Ryan Robinson.
Ramirez, a fifth-year defender and second-year Lion, was named an all-star for the second straight year after earning second team recognition a season ago. The Toronto, Ont., native is as steady as they come on the back line, and has been a solid veteran presence since transferring to York from Robert Morris University in the NCAA.
Bruk, a first-year midfielder from Vancouver, B.C., is another Lions rookie who burst on the OUA scene. He finished second on the team in goals with eight, good for fourth-most in the OUA. Bruk scored in each of his first two OUA matches, and found twine in seven of the Lions 12 regular-season matches. The neuroscience major also chipped in with three assists, and posted a career-best four points (2–2––4) in the Lions season-closing victory over Brock.
Carbone, a fourth-year goalkeeper and third-year Lion, put together a stellar season between the pipes en route to his first OUA all-star selection. The former Oakland University (NCAA) keeper started 11 of 12 York's games and all six postseason matches, posting a half-dozen clean sheets and finishing second in the conference with an .806 save percentage. He also paced the province with a 0.64 goals against average.
Robinson, a first-year midfielder from Hamilton, Ont., was the other Lion to make the all-OUA second team. He scored three goals on the regular season, including one in his second career match on Sept. 1 against Laurier. While only credited with one assist, Robinson was a key member of the Lions offensive attack, and will look to take an even larger offensive role next season.
