- Conor Donovan, Jack Gurr nominated for Defender of the Year, Danny Vitiello nominated for Goalkeeper of the Year, Russell Cicerone nominated for Player of the Year
- Head Coach Mark Briggs nominated for USL Championship Coach of the Year
- Sacramento leads all USL Championship clubs with 5 nominations
Sacramento, Calif. – On Wednesday, the USL Championship announced the finalists for the 2023 USL Championship league awards. Conor Donovan and Jack Gurr were each named finalists for Defender of the Year, 2023 Golden Glove winner Danny Vitiello was named a finalist for Goalkeeper of the Year, and forward Russell Cicerone was named a finalist for Player of the Year. In his fourth season at the helm, Head Coach Mark Briggs was nominated for Coach of the Year. The winners in each category will be announced by the league between November 14 and November 17.
“These league honors are a testament to the consistency and hard work of these individuals but also representative of the team’s collective achievements in 2023. Connor, Danny, Jack and Russell embody our club identity of Indomitable, and are very deserving of these selections,” said Republic FC President and General Manager Todd Dunivant. “Mark has led our club to new heights again this year and his body of work speaks for itself. We’re proud to call each of them our own as they represent our club and city in the best of the league categories.
Donovan and Gurr’s nominations are first of each player’s career for the league’s highest defensive honor. Both players earned a spot on the 2023 USL Championship All-League First Team, announced on Tuesday. The duo contributed to the league’s best defense which conceded only 26 goals in the regular season – the lowest total in the league and lowest total in a single season in club history. For the season, Donovan led league with 34 blocks, and finished high on the league leaderboard with 119 clearances and 71 aerial duels won. Gurr posted one of the most productive offensive seasons of any defender across the league, tallying 11 total scoring contributions (first in the league among defenders) with a career high five goals and six assists, and tallying 61 chances created – the most by a backline player across the league in a single USL Championship campaign since 2019.
Vitiello earned a nomination for Goalkeeper of the Year after a Golden Glove-winning campaign that saw him record a career high 76.2% save percentage and the league’s best goals against average mark at 0.83. His performance this season earned him a spot on the All-League First Team. He recorded 88 saves and 11 shutouts – second best in league play – which made him Republic FC’s all-time clean sheet record holder. During the season, Vitiello was twice named to Team of the Week, and was nominated for Save of the Week honors on five occasions, taking home the honor twice.
Cicerone’s nomination for Player of the Year is the first of his career and comes following a standout campaign in his first season in Sacramento. The Michigan native was named to the All-League second team after recording 15 goals and four assists. He is one of two players from the All-League Second Team to be selected for a season award. Cicerone won May Player of the Month honors, while also being nominated for April. He ended the season with five selections to Team of the Week. He was one of only 12 players to score a hat trick during the season, netting three goals in a 3-1 win over Indy Eleven on May 13, and ranked in the top-10 in scoring contributions with 19.
Briggs’ nomination for Coach of the Year comes after leading Republic FC to the top spot in the Western Conference for the Regular Season for the second time in club history. It is Briggs’ second career nomination; in 2017, he won the honor as head coach of then USL Championship side Real Monarchs SLC. Under Briggs’ leadership, Republic FC held a share of first place or led the Western Conference for all but one week during the regular season. After leading the club to an unbeaten start through its first 13 games and becoming the winningest Head Coach in club history on April 15, he was named April Coach of the Month – his second monthly league honor. Briggs led Republic FC to its most home victories in a single season (11), in addition to one of the league’s best road records with seven away wins. During the 2023 campaign, Mark reached 100 career wins as a coach – including 50 with Republic FC, and is now the winningest coach in club history.
The winners in each category will be announced beginning with Player of the Year on Sunday, November 12 during the broadcast of the USL Championship Final. The league will announce the Goalkeeper and Defender of the Year on November 14, followed by Coach of the Year on November 15.
Season ticket memberships for Republic FC’s 2024 season are now on sale. To learn more about membership benefits – including how to secure the best seats at the lowest price per match – visit SacRepbulicFC.com/memberships.
For more information, visit SacRepublicFC.com.
For the league’s full announcement of the 2023 league award finalists, visit USLChampionship.com.
