FC Dallas center back Matt Hedges has been named MLS Defender of the Year. He finished third in the voting last season, when Montreal Impact’s Lauren Ciman won, and has stormed back to with the honor this season. He is the first ever FC Dallas player to win the award.
Matt Hedges Named MLS Defender of the Year
The vote was a close one. Hedges garnered less than a quarter of the vote on his own. He was closely followed by LA Galaxy import Jelle Van Damme and Axel Sjoberg of the Colorado Rapids. Hedges’s teammate Walker Zimmerman and Steve Birnbaum of D.C. United also received votes.
The Dallas defense was remarkably more productive when Hedges was in the starting XI. In the 26 games where he was on the pitch, the side averaged less than a goal per game (0.88). That’s outstanding compared to the 2.13 per game they conceded without him. It certainly helped that he’s quite adept at picking out opposing passes. He was fourth in MLS with 3.7 interceptions per match.
In truth, either of the starting center backs in Dallas would have made great recipients for this award. Both Hedges and Zimmerman were high profile defenders that were key pieces to the clubs runs at both the Supporters Shield and U.S. Open Cup. The pair were unable to contain Seattle Sounders in the Western Conference semi-final, however, and Dallas’s quest for the first ever domestic treble in MLS history ended prematurely.
Hedges was selected 11th overall by Dallas in the 2012 MLS Superdraft. He has made 150 appearances for the club since then. He’s also no stranger to winning defensive awards. He won defender of the year for the Horizon League twice and the ACC once during his college career split between Butler and North Carolina. He has made one appearance with the United States Men’s National Team. It came in a friendly against Panama in February 2015 when he came on as a substitute.
