Economides top executive

Democrat and Chronicle

(Friday, November 16, 2001) -- Rochester Rhinos vice president/general manager Chris Economides was honored yesterday during league meetings in Tampa as the A-League's Executive of the Year.

Economides is the only GM in Rochester's illustrious six-year history and has helped mold a franchise that has won three league titles over the past four years. He made three key acquisitions during the past seasons -- midfielder Stoian Mladenov, defender Kalin Bankov and forward Neathan Gibson -- that helped the Rhinos repeat as champion.

''It's a tremendous honor, but it's not an individual award, it's a team award," Economides said.

The Rhinos have been honored in the past as Organization of the Year and for their marketing but this is Economides' first award. Pat Ercoli was A-League Coach of the Year in 1998.