PROVIDENCE, R.I. (AAC/SMU) — A pair of Mustangs were honored as AAC players of the year, it was announced by the conference on Tuesday. In addition to the players of the year accolades, three Mustangs were named First Team All-AAC, one named Second Team All-AAC, and another named to the All-Rookie squad.
 
Eddie Munjoma took home AAC defensive player of the year honors after dominating on both sides of the field in 2019. Munjoma helped anchor the league's best defense en route to nine shutouts in 2019 and a GAA of 0.75, the fourth lowest since 2000. In addition to his defensive dominance, Munjoma scored 10 goals in the regular season, tallying three multi-goal games for the Mustangs. The senior set a career high in points, recording 28 points so far in 2019, and the third most in the conference. Munjoma becomes the seventh Mustang to take home the honor, and the first since Jordan Cano in 2017.
 
Sophomore Gabriel Costa also took home player of the year conference honors as he was named Co-Midfielder of the Year after helping lead the Mustangs to their highest offensive output in nearly 15 years. Costa ranks third nationally with 10 assists, but his 0.77 assists per game are the most in the country. The Rio de Janeiro native added seven goals in just 13 games for SMU. Costa joins Mauro Cichero (2017) and John Lujano (2015) as the only Mustangs to be named conference midfielder of the year.
 
A trio of Mustangs were named AAC First Team All-Conference, as players of the year Munjoma and Costa were tabbed alongside Garrett McLaughlin. McLaughlin led the league in goals (15) and points (35), setting new conference records for goals and points in conference play. McLaughlin will finish his SMU career by being named to one of the AAC All-Conference teams for the third straight year after a First Team honor in 2017 and Second Team honor last season.
 
Knut Ahlander was named a Second Team All-AAC honoree after a breakthrough season that saw the Norway native collected a conference-best 11 assists in addition to seven goals. His 25 points in 2019 are tied for the fourth most in the conference and his play has been a catalyst for an SMU offense that scored 55 goals in the regular season.
 
Rounding out the AAC postseason accolades was sophomore defender Henrik Bredeli, who was named to the AAC All-Rookie Team after helping man the Mustangs' backline in 2019. Bredeli started all 16 games for the Mustangs, and tallied the game-winning goal in the late-season match versus UConn. Bredeli's selection to the All-Rookie team marks the seventh straight year that a Mustang has been selected to the team.
 
The 10th-ranked Mustangs are the No. 2 seed in this week's AAC Championship and will take on USF (10-5-1) on Wednesday at 3:30 p.m. CT in Orlando. SMU is seeking its third straight AAC postseason crown.