QUEENS, N.Y. –The St. John’s University community and its soccer teams are mourning the death of Hassell Phillips, a former student-athlete who passed away earlier this month.

He was 45-years-old.

A member of the St. John’s men’s soccer team from 1991-93, Phillips was an integral part of head coach Dr. Dave Masur’s first three teams at the university and helped propel the Johnnies to a pair of league championships in 1992 and 1993.

In 1993, Phillips iced the Big East title game with a late goal against Boston College, helping the Johnnies claim the second of four consecutive conference crowns and extend their season-long unbeaten streak to 21 games.

“Hassell was an unsung hero of my first few years here at St. John’s,” Masur said. “He was one of the hardest working, most focused and committed kids that we had in the program. He would always work behind the scenes, whether he came off the bench or played multiple positions, he was always dedicated to the program and to his teammates and to the task at hand. He was a tremendous credit to our soccer program.”

A double alumnus of the university who earned an M.B.A. in international finance in 1996, Phillips enjoyed a long and successful career at TIAA-CREF in the Charlotte, N.C., area after graduation.

Phillips is survived by his wife, Amanda Brutus-Phillips, and their two daughters, Janais and Janaya.

A memorial service for Phillips will be held on Saturday at 7 p.m. at the Rural Hill Cultural Center in Huntersville, N.C.

Members of the St. John’s men’s soccer family will gather in Queens to honor Phillips’ memory Sept. 23, when the Red Storm takes on Xavier at 7 p.m.

A GoFundMe page has been set up for Phillips’ family and can be found at:

https://www.gofundme.com/hassell-phillips-funeral-fund

Front Row Soccer editor Michael Lewis has covered 13 World Cups (eight men, five women), seven Olympics and 25 MLS Cups. He has written about New York City FC, New York Cosmos, the New York Red Bulls and both U.S. national teams for Newsday and has penned a soccer history column for the Guardian.com. Lewis, who has been honored by the Press Club of Long Island and National Soccer Coaches Association of America, is the former editor of BigAppleSoccer.com. He has written seven books about the beautiful game and has published ALIVE AND KICKING The incredible but true story of the Rochester Lancers. It is available at Amazon.com.