The line of candidates for defensive player of the year in Atlantic 10 soccer has for several years started with a ºüÀêÊÓƵ University player and ended with a Billiken winning the award.
Goalkeeper Patrick Schulte, who started for the U.S. Olympic team this summer, began the run before he was unseated by center back Kipp Keller, who became the fifth overall pick in the 2022 Major League Soccer draft.
In recent seasons, coach Kevin Kalish has worked wonders in the transfer portal to continue the run of success with center backs Alberto Suarez and Diego Konincks, who were one-year SLU players who captured the honor.
SLU now has a pair of center backs who could contend. More important to Kalish is that returning senior Max Floriani and transfer graduate student Joey Maher have the credentials to make the Billikens one of the top defensive teams in the country.
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“We play it by ear every year to get the best possible pairing, whether that’s transfers or guys who have been in the program,†Kalish said. “They’re as good as any center back pairings we’ve had in previous years. We’ve tried to make sure the spine of our team is extremely strong, and we’re expecting another year of that.â€
SLU opens its season at 7 p.m. Friday at home against No. 7 Indiana, where Maher played his first four years of college. That game comes a night after a women’s matchup at 7 p.m. Thursday between No. 23 SLU and No. 4 BYU at Hermann Stadium.
Maher was the first pick in the second round — the 30th overall selection — in the MLS SuperDraft this year but opted to use his final year of eligibility close to his hometown of Caseyville and high school alma mater at Althoff.
Floriani is projected as a potential first-round pick next year. A natural center back, he was playing outside at the start of the 2023 season before being moved back to the middle, where he’ll team with Maher, who played with the Billikens during the spring exhibition season.
“Joey has a lot of qualities that make him a great player and teammate,†Floriani said. “He’s a great leader in the back. We’re opposites in a way. He’s louder than I am and likes to talk. I do little stuff, and that makes us a great combo in the back.â€
Maher arrives at SLU after playing in 85 games for the Hoosiers, starting 83. Of those, 40 were shutouts for Indiana. Maher was named to the All-Big Ten first team last season.
When Maher signed, Kalish was quick to say that he would become the best center back in the country this season.
“That means a lot coming from one of the best coaches in college soccer,†Maher said. “But it’s not about me, it’s about the people I work with every day. We push each other to become the best, and I believe we’ll become the best back line in the country. Defense is the backbone of a winning program.â€
SLU has had some strong combinations. Keller teamed with Chase Niece, who was drafted by FC Dallas in 2022. The following season, Suarez transferred to SLU to join emerging center back Grady Easton, who suffered a season-ending injury early last season.
That paved the way for Floriani to move from the right side to center back, where he played with Konincks.
Maher joined the Billikens in the spring after graduating in December with a degree in accounting. He is working on a master’s degree while seeking to build a formidable duo.
The SLU-Indiana matchup pits the two most successful programs in college history. The Billikens have won 10 championships, although all in the distant past, and the Hoosiers have won eight, the most recent being in 2012.
Indiana won the most recent meeting between the two teams in the 2022 NCAA Tournament 1-0.