LOCK HAVEN, Pa.- The Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) released its men's soccer All-Conference teams on Tuesday afternoon. West Chester was well represented again as
Jaden Howard (Townsend, Del./Middletown) became the Golden Rams' first Defensive Player of the Year since Craig Potts in 2021 and was one of six All-PSAC East honorees, including five First Team honorees.
Ian Alicea (Huntingdon Valley, Pa./Lower Moreland), Elijah Ostrander (Marmora, N.J./Saint Augustine Prep), Peter Tichy (Bethlehem, Pa./Freedom), Maksym Komperda (Whitehall, Pa./Allentown Central Catholic) and Howard were all First Team honorees, while
Luke Newman (Mission Viejo, Ca./Santa Margarita Catholic) was a Second Team honoree.
Six honorees across the First and Second teams are the most West Chester has had since 2024, when seven Golden Rams were honored by the league office, while the five First Team honorees are believed to be the most First Team honorees in team history as West Chester captured a share of its first Regular Season title since 2018.
Howard finished a stellar regular season with a shutout win over Shepherd, improving to 7-3-4 overall with a 0.69 goals-against average and eight shutouts. Howard was even more impressive in league action, posting a 6-3-1 record, a 0.50 goals-against average, and seven shutouts in 10 PSAC East matches. In the PSAC Quarterfinals against Seton Hill, Howard made 10 saves to slow the potent Griffin offense and officially earn a draw before falling in PKs.
Alicea is now a four-time All-PSAC honoree and a two-time member of the First Team as the senior captain anchored the Golden Ram backline throughout the 2026 season, while adding a goal at Lackawanna on September 30.
Ostrander, who scored the game-winning goal in a crucial 2-0 road win over East Stroudsburg that sparked a late-season surge and led the Golden Rams to the regular-season crown, joined Alicea on the backline throughout his rookie season, appearing in 16 games with 11 starts.
Tichy and Komperda provided much of the offense for West Chester in 2026, combining for 12 goals and six assists, as Komperda scored eight goals, including a hat trick in the regular-season finale at Shepherd along with an assist for 17 points, while Tichy added four goals and five assists, including three goals in the span of a week against Shippensburg and Millersville on September 12 and 16. Tichy is now a two-time First Team honoree, while Komperda earned his Third All-League citation and his second career First-Team nod. Komperda also added a goal in the PSAC Quarterfinals against Seton Hill, finishing the season with nine goals after scoring four in the final two games.
Newman, the final All-League honoree, is also a two-time All-Conference player for West Chester now after being named to the First Team All-League squad in 2025. In 2026, Newman tied with Tichy for the team lead in assists with five and added a goal in the aforementioned 2-0 road win over East Stroudsburg in mid-October. Newman has scored a point in three of West Chester's last five games, adding a goal and two assists during that span.
West Chester fell to Seton Hill on penalty kicks in the PSAC Quarterfinals on Rockwell Field on Sunday afternoon.
