Massapequa Native Helps Lead Team To NCAA Championship

Massapequa native Dylan Nealis helped lead the Georgetown University men's soccer team to its first NCAA Division I National Championship on Dec. 16. The tense game went to penalty kicks, and ended with a 7-6 victory for the Hoyas over the University of Virginia Cavaliers.

Nealis — the brother of New York Red Bulls defender Sean Nealis — is captain of the Georgetown team, and capped off his final season playing for the school with this victory.

The game was tied 3-3 at the end of the second half, going in overtime. At the end of that, the score was still tied, which led to penalty kicks.

At the end of the game Nealis was named the Defensive Most Outstanding Player. And just days earlier, he was was named to the United Soccer Coaches All-America first team.

Nealis was also one of three men's soccer standouts that were named finalists for Missouri Athletic Club's (MAC) Hermann Trophy, the country's top college soccer honor. The winner will be announced at a banquet on Jan. 3, 2020.

The win over Virginia capped a 17-game winning streak for Georgetown, and was just the latest feather in Nealis's cap. Earlier this year, he was named the BIG EAST Preseason Defensive Player of the Year, and was also named to the 2019 Missouri Athletic Club Hermann Trophy Watch List. He was the 2018 BIG EAST Defensive Player of the Year, a First Team All-East Region selection and a First Team All-BIG EAST honoree.