Former Ohio State men's soccer standout Roger Espinoza made his Barclays Premier League debut with the Wigan Athletic last week and the midfielder was impressive in his first game against Sunderland. 

"I was very pleased with his role," said Wigan manager Roberto Martinez. "Roger had a massive impact when he came off the bench, getting involved in all the good things we produced going forward." 

The former Buckeye made headlines this past summer as an Olympian on Honduras' national team. Espinoza received a standing ovation from the English crowd when leaving the field due to a red card in the 90th minute. He had been the heart and soul of a relentless Honduran side in their quarterfinal match against Brazil, as he helped set up the Hondurans' first goal and scored the second.

During his time at Ohio State he led the Buckeyes to the 2007 Big Ten Tournament Championship and the NCAA title game as a first-team All-Big Ten selection.  

Three Big Ten men's soccer players were selected in the MLS Supplemental Draft, held Tuesday. Ohio State's Chris Hegngi was chosen with the 22nd pick by the Portland Timbers, Penn State's John Gallagher was picked by the Chicago Fire with the 30th selection and Indiana's Caleb Konstanski was drafted No. 68, also by the Fire.   

Hegngi played in all 79 career games, making 77 starts, and had 18 goals and 11 assists to his credit. The 2011 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year and first-team selection produced career goals and points totals which are in the top 10 all-time at Ohio State, while his shots are second in program history.

Gallagher was selected as a captain for the 2012 Penn State squad that captured the program's first Big Ten regular-season championship since 2005. After transitioning to left back from midfield as a senior, Gallagher posted a career-high five points on three assists and a goal while handling set piece responsibilities on the way to earning first-team All-Big Ten honors.

Konstanski served as a team co-captain for the Hoosiers in 2012 where he helped anchor a defense that posted 12 shutouts on the season, including three-straight shutout wins over North Carolina, Creighton and Georgetown en route Indiana's record eighth College Cup title.

Three Big Ten men's soccer players were selected in the 2013 Major League Soccer SuperDraft held in Indianapolis, Ind., today. Indiana's  Eriq Zavaleta was picked 10th overall by the Seattle Sounders, while teammate Luis Soffner was chosen by the New England Revolution with the 36th pick. Michigan's Kofi Opare was taken 24th overall by the L.A. Galaxy. 

Zavaleta and Soffner become the 40th and 41st Hoosier players selected in an MLS Draft since the league's inception in 1996. Zavaleta, a unanimous selection for 2012 Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year, entered the draft after his sophomore campaign in which he led the Hoosiers to their record eighth national title. He led the conference in nearly every offensive category and was tied for third in the NCAA with 18 goals scored. Soffner finishes his career with the Hoosiers as a four-year starter, owning a 47-26-11 record with 32 shutouts and a 0.93 goals-against average. He ended his senior season with three-straight clean sheets against North Carolina, Creighton and Georgetown en route to the College Cup title.

Opare becomes the Wolverines's seventh MLS SuperDraftee, and the first since Justin Meram went No. 15 overall in 2011. Opare was a four-year starter for Michigan on the back line and is fifth all-time in minutes played (6,411). This past season the tri-captain led the Wolverines to the Big Ten Tournament title game.

Indiana Release
Michigan Release   

The Big Ten enjoyed an extremely successful 2012 men's soccer season, capped by Indiana's record eighth NCAA title. The 2012 conference season was full of drama until the very end, as five teams were in the running for the Big Ten title going into the final weekend of play. Ultimately, Penn State and Northwestern shared the regular season title, while Michigan State captured the Big Ten Tournament crown. 

NCAA Championship Success: Four Big Ten teams - Indiana, Michigan, Michigan State and Northwestern - earned berths to the NCAA Men's Soccer Championship, the fifth time in the last six years at least four conference squads garnered bids to the tournament. Each of the four Big Ten teams won at least one game in the championships, while the Wildcats advanced to the third round. The tournament was highlighted by a historic run by the Hoosiers, as Indiana captured its record eighth national title and became the first No. 16 seed to win the crown. To read more about the Big Ten in the NCAA Championship, click here and here.

Big Ten Champions: Northwestern and Penn State each won shares of the 2012 Men's Soccer Big Ten Championship after earning 3-1-2 conference records. The Wildcats won the crown for the second consecutive season and the third time in program history, while the Nittany Lions earned their first title since 2005 and third overall. For more on the regular season conference champions, click here.

Big Ten Tournament Titans: Michigan State claimed the 2012 Big Ten Tournament title, knocking off Michigan in the championship match, 2-1, in overtime. The Spartans captured the crown as the No. 5 seed and earned their third title overall. For more on the 2012 Big Ten Tournament and All-Tournament Team, click here.

Conference Postseason Accolades: The conference announced its men's soccer All-Big Ten teams and individual award winners at the Big Ten Tournament banquet. Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta was the unanimous selection for Offensive Player of the Year. Northwestern's Chris Ritter earned the Defensive Player of the Year award, while teammate Joey Calistri was the unanimous choice for Freshman of the Year. Penn State's Bob Warming reeled in Coach of the Year honors. For more on the postseason awards and the complete All-Big Ten teams, click here. 

In the Final Polls: Indiana and Northwestern earned rankings in the final NSCAA/Continental Tire poll of the season, as the NCAA Champion Hoosiers (16-5-3) sat atop the poll at No. 1 and the Wildcats (13-6-4) clocked in at No. 18. Michigan (11-10-1) and Michigan State (12-10-1) both received votes in the poll. For the complete final poll, click here.  

Where We Rank: Four Big Ten student-athletes finished the season ranking in the top 10 nationally in various statistical categories. Michigan's Fabio Villas Boas Pereira was tied for first in the country in total assists (8), while teammate Adam Grinwis was tied for eighth in total saves (100). Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta ranked tied for third in total goals (18), sixth in total points (40) and tied for seventh in goals per game (0.75), while teammate A.J. Corrado ranked sixth in total assists. As a team, Indiana tied for seventh in shutout percentage (0.50) and ranked 10th in team goals against average (0.78). For the complete season's statistics, click here.

National Names: Several conference standouts were awarded nationally for their success on and off the field during the 2012 season. Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta garnered NSCAA All-America status and Soccer America MVP first team recognition, while teammate Femi Hollinger-Janzen and Northwestern's Joey Calistri earned Soccer America freshman team honors. In the classroom, Michigan State's Kevin Cope was named NSCAA Scholar All-America and Penn State's Julian Cardona collected Capital One Academic All-America accolades from CoSIDA. Cardona was also named to the Capital One Academic All-District team, along with Indiana's A.J. Corrado.     

Congrats Coach: Indiana head men's soccer coach Todd Yeagley was named the NCAA Division I Coach of the Year by Soccer America. Yeagley led the Hoosiers to their eighth national title and a 16-5-3 record in just his third season at the helm of the program. He becomes the third Big Ten coach to win the honor in the past 10 years.

All-Region Recognition: Eleven men's soccer players were named to the NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region Team, as five of the seven conference squads were represented on the list. Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta was awarded first-team honors, while teammates Nikita Kotlov and Caleb Konstanski were second and third team selections, respectively. Joining Kotlov on the second team was Michigan State's Kevin Cope, Northwestern's Nikko Boxall, Tyler Miller and Chris Ritter, Penn State's John Gallagher and Wisconsin's AJ Cochran. Michigan State's Adam Montague and Northwestern's Joey Calistri earned third-team accolades. For the complete All-Great Lakes Region team, click here. 

Indiana head men's soccer coach Todd Yeagley has been named NCAA Division I Coach of the Year by Soccer America, it was announced Monday. Yeagley led the Hoosiers to their eighth national title and a 16-5-3 record in just his third season at the helm of the program. Yeagley becomes the third Big Ten coach to win the honor in the past 10 years, joining Joe Baum (Michigan State, 2008) and his father, Jerry Yeagley (Indiana, 2003).

Additionally, three Big Ten student-athletes earned individual accolades from Soccer America. Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta was named to the MVP first team and Femi Hollinger-Janzen earned All-Freshman second team recognition. Northwestern's Joey Calistri, Big Ten Freshman of the Year, earned All-Freshman first team honors.

Zavaleta was a unanimous selection for Big Ten Offensive Player of the Year after leading the conference in nearly every offensive category, while Hollinger-Janzen and Calistri were both named to the Big Ten All-Freshman Team as forwards. 

Michigan State men's soccer player Kevin Cope was named to the National Soccer Coaches Association of America (NSCAA) Scholar All-America second-team. To be named Scholar All-America, a college student must attain a 3.30 grade point average on a 4.0 scale. The junior business major has accumulated a 3.68 GPA and has already earned an Academic All-Big Ten award this post-season. On the field, the defender was named second-team All-Big Ten.

Cope and the rest of the 2012 Scholar All-America Teams will be recognized Jan. 19, at the All-America Luncheon held during the 2013 NSCAA Convention in Indianapolis, Ind.

For the complete list of NSCAA Scholar All-Americans, click here.

Eleven men's soccer players were named to the NSCAA All-Great Lakes Region Team, it was announced this week. Five of the seven conference squads were represented on the list, including four from Co-Big Ten Champion Northwestern and three from NCAA Champion Indiana. Below is the complete list of Big Ten student-athletes on the All-Great Lakes Region Team.

First Team
Eriq Zavaleta, IND

Second Team
Nikita Kotlov, IND
Kevin Cope, MSU
Nikko Boxall, NU
Tyler Miller, NU
Chris Ritter, NU
John Gallagher, PSU
AJ Cochran, WIS

Third Team
Caleb Konstanski, IND
Adam Montague, MSU
Joey Calistri, NU 

*For the complete All-Great Lakes Region Team, click here.

Three Big Ten men's soccer student-athletes were invited to the 2013 adidas MLS Player Combine, it was announced on Tuesday. Indiana's Luis Soffner, Michigan's Kofi Opare and Penn State's John Gallagher will join 51 of their peers in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., from Jan. 11-15 to take part in the combine which leads to the MLS SuperDraft on Jan. 17, in Indianapolis, Ind.

A committee of NCAA Division I coaches from every conference, as well as MLS representatives, selected the invitees, all of whom completed their college eligibility this season. Generation adidas signing, non-collegiate players and additional college seniors will be announced in the coming weeks.

For the complete list of invited players, click here.

Two Big Ten teams are ranked in the final NSCAA/Continental Tire poll of the year, it was announced on Tuesday. NCAA Champion Indiana (16-5-3) tops the poll, while Northwestern (13-6-4) comes in at No. 18. Michigan (11-10-1) and Michigan State (12-10-1) are both receiving votes.

For the complete ranking, click here.

Four Big Ten men's soccer standouts finished the season ranking in the top 10 nationally in various statistical categories. Michigan's Fabio Villas Boas Pereira was tied for first in the country in total assists (8), while teammate Adam Grinwis was tied for eighth in total saves (100). Indiana's Eriq Zavaleta ranked tied for third in total goals (18), sixth in total points (40) and tied for seventh in goals per game (0.75), while teammate A.J. Corrado ranked sixth in total assists (12).

As a team, NCAA champion Indiana tied for seventh in shutout percentage (0.50) and ranked 10th in team goals against average (0.78)

For the complete season's statistics, click here.