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Beloit Memorial's Beckham Denu Heads All-SLC First Team

Beloit Memorial’s Beckham Denu capped off a stellar season in goal by being named the Southern Lakes Conference’s best goalkeeper with a spot on the All-Conference First Team.

Denu, one of four Purple Knights honored by the SLC, helped lead Beloit to seven shutouts this season, with three of those coming in conference play.

He only allowed 27 goals in 1,590 minutes while making 107 saves for a save percentage of .799. His goals against average was just 1.36, and he also provided plenty of leadership as a junior on a team composed of several freshman and sophomores.

Beckham’s younger brother, Banks, earned a spot on the All-Conference Second Team as a forward. The freshman was second on the team with 13 goals, and he was first on the Knights and third in the SLC in total points with 42 as he had a conference-high 16 assists.

Junior Diego Gama made the All-Conference Second Team as a defender. Often touted by coach Brian Denu as the glue that held together the back row, he helped Beloit’s defense only allow an average of 1.4 goals per game. He also contributed three goals.

Freshman John Anthony Aburto was named an All-Conference Honorable Mention as a midfielder. The frosh scored seven goals, two of those being game winners, and provided six assists for 20 total points.

The young Knights finished the season 9-10-4 and fell 2-1 to Waunakee in a Division 1 regional semifinal.

Westosha Central senior midfielder Petar Minic was named the conference’s Player of the Year.

The entire All-SLC team follows:

FIRST TEAM: FORWARDS: Owen Backus, sr., Elkhorn Area; Owen Zikowski, sr., Union Grove; Gio Diaz, jr., Badger; James Kiraly, sr., Wilmot. MIDFIELDERS: Niall Hagen, so., Union Grove; Petar Minic, sr., Westosha Central; Martin Mata, so., Badger. DEFENDERS: Tyler Hagen, jr., Union Grove; Jack Jacobs, jr., Elkhorn Area; Ernie Virgili, jr., Westosha Central. GOALKEEPER: Beckham Denu, jr., Beloit Memorial.

Source: Beloit Daily News