By Mason Nesbitt, TMU Sports Information Director

As Benji Tembo walked off the playing surface at Spirit Field in Surprise, Arizona, on Saturday, TMU coach Jim Rickard posed a question to his star midfielder. It had been a typical Tembo performance to that point – and that’s exactly why Rickard was concerned.

For 45 minutes, in the blazing sun, Tembo drove into the teeth of Ottawa University Arizona’s defense, created scoring opportunities and sprinted back to help TMU defend.

“Can you keep this up?” Rickard asked.

“I’m good, coach,” Tembo said before scoring in the 65th minute of what became a 2-1 win.

The conversation, short as it was, summed up Tembo’s four-year career at Master’s.

He has sustained a level of excellence rare even in a program that regularly positions itself in the NAIA Top 25 and churns out All-Americans year after year.

Tuesday, Tembo was named Golden State Athletic Conference Player of the Year for the second straight season. And, as if leading a three-on-two counterattack, he dished off praise to teammates with speed and precision.

“I would say I’m very honored, again,” Tembo said. “But I also think Luis (Garcia Sosa) and Trevor (Mangan) were better than me.”

It’s true that Tembo didn’t accumulate stats at the rate he did a year ago (frankly, he didn’t have to as Mangan, Garcia Sosa and others flourished in front of the net), but coaches and teammates agree that Tembo’s impact did not wane.

As of Tuesday, Tembo had scored a team-high 10 goals with four assists, but box scores won’t show the “dirty work,” said Garcia Sosa.

“Stuff that people don’t really get credited for,” Garcia Sosa said of Tembo. “Starting the play, dropping deep to get the ball, coming back on defense after he just made a 50-yard run.”

That’s how Tembo envisioned his TMU career when he came to the United States from Lilongwe, Malawi. He figured he’d facilitate chances for others and fortify the program’s defense. He didn’t think the stats would come.

But they did.

Tembo led the GSAC in goals (17), points (42) and game-winners (six) last season on his way to third-team NAIA All-American honors. He became the Mustangs’ first Player of the Year since fellow Malawi native Humphrey Mahowa in 2014.

This year, Tembo became the first player since Azusa Pacific’s Eric Winblad (2008, 2009) to win the award in back-to-back seasons.

“He just has another gear,” Rickard said of Tembo. “It’s one thing to run fast, it’s another thing to run fast with the ball, it’s a whole nother thing to run fast with the ball and make a composed shot.”

Tembo does all three. But this year he’s had to do it less often.

Rickard hoped his attack would be more multi-dimensional this season, and players like Mangan, Garcia Sosa and Dylan Bielanski have made it a reality.

As of Tuesday, Mangan had scored 10 goals, Garcia Sosa had nine and Bielanski seven. All career highs.

As a result, Mangan and Garcia Sosa were both named to the All-GSAC team Tuesday, along with junior defender Justin Ikeora, who has been crucial in helping the Mustangs rebound from a two-match losing streak near the start of October.

Since then, Master’s has won five matches in a row, three on the road, and Saturday they earned a second-place finish in the GSAC and a first round bye in the conference tournament with a 2-1 win at Ottawa. Tembo’s game-winner was his fourth of the season.