Massachusetts Maritime Head Men’s Soccer Coach Greg Perry was named earlier today as the 2013 Massachusetts State Collegiate Athletic Conference Champion’s Choice Coach of the Year in a vote of his peers after guiding the Buccaneers to their first post-season berth in nine years this fall.

Perry, a Bridgewater, Mass. native and a current resident of Marshfield, Mass., earned his third MASCAC Coach of the Year accolade with this year’s award, as he was previously honored by his fellow league coaches in 1996 and 2004.  Massachusetts Maritime has posted eight overall victories this fall, including a 1-0 triumph over Salem State last night in the MASCAC quarterfinals played at Clean Harbors Stadium, which was the Buccaneers’ first post-season win in school history.

Perry, whose 21 years of service makes him the “dean” of MASCAC mentors, has led Massachusetts Maritime to its highest victory total and first post-season berth since 2004 in a season that has also seen the Buccaneers notch triumphs over rivals Coast Guard (the first in program history) and Bridgewater State en route to an 8-8-2 overall slate, including a 3-3-1 conference mark, heading into Friday night’s MASCAC semifinal showdown at top-seeded Worcester State.  Tuesday’s quarterfinal round win over Salem State was Massachusetts Maritime’s second of the season over the perennial league power Vikings, as Perry’s crew had not defeated Salem State in nine years prior to a 2-1 road victory back on September 21^st.

“I couldn’t be more pleased or proud of what Coach Perry has accomplished this season and throughout his career, and he is most deserving of this recognition by his peers,” Massachusetts Maritime Director of Athletics Bob Corradi says of Perry’s honor.  “He has earned the respect of student-athletes and coaches throughout the region during his distinguished tenure at the Academy, and I know he will credit his players and his assistant coaches for this award, which to him is truly a team accomplishment.”

Perry, a former standout at both Bridgewater-Raynham Regional High School and at Westfield State in the late 1980’s, is the winningest coach in Massachusetts Maritime history with 143 victories to date, and he will lead the Buccaneers into the MASCAC semifinals for the second time in school history with Friday’s match against Worcester State at Coughlin Field in Worcester, Mass. beginning at 7:00 p.m. EST.  Perry’s squad will look to avenge a 4-1 setback to the homestanding Lancers suffered back on October 12^th at Clean Harbors Stadium.